COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Arlington House Camden

Andrew Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many bed spaces Arlington House in Camden had  (a) before and  (b) after its modernisation under the hostels capital improvement programme; and what alternative arrangements were made for individuals displaced from Arlington House.

Yvette Cooper: Before its redevelopment Arlington House provided 399 beds. Following the hostels capital improvement programme (HCIP) investment this number has been reduced to 130. This has been agreed with the local authority in order to create more non-accommodation space where training, other support activities can take place, and to move homeless people out of long-term large institutional provision.
	Novas who own and run Arlington House worked in close partnership with the Camden council to ensure that every client was resettled appropriately.

Council Tax Benefit

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average time taken by  (a) Warrington borough council and  (b) councils in (i) the north-west and (ii) England is to determine an application for (A) council tax benefit and (B) planning permission.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 12 June 2007
	The average time taken by Warrington borough council and councils in the north-west and England to determine an application for council tax benefit is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Council tax benefit claims 
			   Average days taken in 2006-07( 1) 
			 Warrington 27 
			 North-west 36 
			 England 34 
			 (1) April to December 2006  Source: Department for Works and Pensions 
		
	
	Information on the average time taken to determine planning permission is not collated centrally. However, the number of applications decided in 2006-07(1) is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Planning permission 
			  Percentage 
			   Up to 8 weeks  Up to 13 weeks  More than 13 weeks 
			 Warrington 91 98 2 
			 North West 84 94 6 
			 England 82 93 7 
			 (1) April to December 2006  Source: Communities and Local Government

Departments: Recruitment

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department and its agencies paid to recruitment consultants in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: The central part of Communities and Local Government and its predecessor Departments paid the following amounts to recruitment agencies in the specified years:
	
		
			   Amount (£) 
			 January-April 2007 34,519.80 
			 January-December 2006 92,444.78 
			 January-December 2005 123,600.08 
			 January-December 2004 155,135.14 
			 January-December 2003 93,604.62 
		
	
	Information prior to January 2003 and in relation to the Department's agencies is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Temporary Employment

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many  (a) temporary and  (b) agency staff were employed by her Department in each of the last five years.

Angela Smith: The Department for Communities and Local Government and its predecessor Departments employed the following numbers of casual staff in each of the last five years:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2002-03 54 
			 2003-04 129 
			 2004-05 131 
			 2005-06 166 
			 2006-07 53 
		
	
	This does not include staff in the Government Offices or the Department's agencies.
	The information requested about agency staff is not held centrally.

Departments: Travel Agents

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department and its agencies paid in travel agencies' fees in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: The Department for Communities and Local Government and its predecessor, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, were created following Machinery of Government changes on 5 May 2006 and 29 May 2002 respectively.
	The Department (and its main predecessor the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) uses one fee-based travel agency contract administered by the Department for Transport at a combined annual fixed rate (since July 2005) of £50,000. Individual Departments' elements of this annual fixed rate are not separately identifiable. From May 2002 to July 2005, travel agent's fees were paid at 1.5 per cent. of contract turnover, an average figure of £12,500 per quarter.
	It is not possible to identify separately fees for other travel contracts used by the Department, as any such fees are built in to the individual ticket prices.
	The Department's Executive agencies have separate procedures for making travel arrangements, but have advised that they have not paid any travel agent fees during the period in question.

Fire Services: Cornwall

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions she has had with Cornwall Fire Authority to try to resolve the dispute there.

Angela Smith: I have had no discussions with Cornwall Fire and Rescue Authority seeking to resolve any disputes in that county. Industrial relations are a matter for the Fire and Rescue Authority. There is not currently an official dispute.

Fire Services: Information and Communications Technology

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the provision of new mobile control rooms which can interface with the new regional fire control rooms is within the scope of  (a) the FireControl project and  (b) the FireLink project.

Angela Smith: New mobile control rooms are not being provided as part of the FiReControl or Firelink Projects.
	Fire and Rescue Services currently provide mobile incident command units which enable effective management of large incidents. The Firelink contract provides for those existing mobile command units and all other Fire and Rescue Service emergency response vehicles, as identified by the respective FRS, to have Firelink equipment installed. The utilisation of the data capability will only be realised once the FiReControl capability is rolled out.

Green Belt

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers the regional spatial strategy process has to change the status of green belt land; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 June 2007
	The regional spatial strategy (RSS) is the statutory strategic development plan. Any proposed changes to the general extent of green belt will therefore need to be set out and taken forward through that process.

Green Belt

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers local authorities have to re-designate green belt land; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 June 2007
	Current policy, set out in Planning Policy Guidance note 2 (PPG2): Green Belts, makes it clear that is the responsibility of regional planning bodies and local planning authorities to designate land as Green Belt through the development plan process. Any proposed changes to Green Belt boundaries should also be made through the development plan process as set out in PPG2.

Green Belt: Gloucestershire

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proposals are contained in the South West Regional Spatial Strategy to change the status of green belt land in Gloucestershire; how much land is involved; which sites are specifically mentioned; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 June 2007
	The draft regional spatial strategy does not contain site specific proposals. It will be for the local planning authorities to identify specific site allocations sites in their local development documents to accommodate the housing provision in the final RSS. However, the draft RSS identifies two broad 'Areas of Search' for sustainable urban extensions, to the north of Gloucester and to the north west of Cheltenham. Both 'Areas of Search' extend into the neighbouring Tewkesbury district and both would require changes to be made to the general extent of the green belt. The draft RSS also indicates possible additions, as well as deletions, to the general extent of the green belt.
	The draft RSS is currently at Examination in Public before an independent Panel. The Panel is expected to submit its report, with recommendations, to Government later this year. The Government will then consider that report and their response to it. It would not, therefore, be appropriate to make a statement at this time.

Green Belt: East Sussex

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what Government policy is on building on the green belt in  (a) Eastbourne and  (b) East Sussex.

Yvette Cooper: There is no designated green belt in Eastbourne or in East Sussex.

Home Information Packs

Douglas Hogg: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government at what time on 16 May Mr. Justice Collins gave his interim oral ruling with regard to the application by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors for a judicial review of the decision previously made by her with regard to the inclusion of energy performance certificates in home information packs; and whether lawyers or others representing her were present when that ruling was made.

Yvette Cooper: The Treasury Solicitor's Office, who were acting for the Department, received a facsimile copy of the order, dated 17 may, at 12.27 pm on 17 May. Neither lawyers nor others representing the Department were present when the ruling was given.

Home Information Packs

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether an estate agent will be able to sell a property with a home information pack produced by another estate agent.

Yvette Cooper: There is nothing in the regulations to prevent an estate agent from selling a property with a home information pack produced by another estate agent, provided that the pack complies with the terms of the regulations.

Home Information Packs

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in which journals advertisements in relation to home information packs have been placed on behalf of her Department.

Yvette Cooper: Advertising for the home information packs have been placed in the following journals:
	 The Negotiator
	 Mortgage Solutions
	 Estate Agency News
	 Mortgage Strategy
	 Lending Strategy
	 Money Marketing
	 Financial Adviser
	 Law Society Gazette
	 RICS Business
	 Period Living
	 House Beautiful
	 Good Housekeeping
	 House and Garden
	 25 Beautiful Homes
	 Country Living
	 World of Interiors
	 BBC Good Homes
	 Country Homes
	 Homes and Gardens
	 BBC Home and Antiques
	 Ideal Home
	 Living Etc
	 Real Homes
	 Daily Telegraph
	 Times
	 Guardian
	 Independent
	 Daily Mail
	 Express
	 Evening Standard
	 Londonpaper
	 Metro
	 London Lite
	 City AM
	 Sunday Telegraph
	 Sunday Times
	 Observer
	 Independent on Sunday
	 Mail on Sunday
	 Sunday Express
	 Newcastle Evening Chronicle
	 Exclusive Magazine
	 Southern Property Adviser
	 Northampton Chronicle and Echo
	 Huddersfield Daily Examiner
	 Cambridge Evening News
	 Cambridge Property News
	 South Shields Gazette
	 Teesside Evening Gazette
	 Sunderland Echo
	 Northern Echo
	 Hartlepool Mail
	 Shields Gazette
	 South Tyne Star
	 Yorkshire Evening Post
	 Hull Daily Mail
	 Sheffield Star
	 Bradford Telegraph and Argus
	 Yorkshire Evening Press
	 Grimsby Evening Telegraph
	 Halifax Evening Courier
	 Brighton Evening Argus
	 Portsmouth News
	 Reading Evening Post
	 Basildon Evening Echo
	 Colchester Evening Gazette
	 Kent Messenger
	 Bournemouth Daily Echo
	 Gloucester Citizen
	 Swindon Evening Advertiser
	 Bath Chronicle
	 Gloucestershire Echo
	 Liverpool Echo
	 Lancashire Evening Telegraph
	 Blackpool Gazette
	 Oldham Evening Chronicle
	 Amra and Clacksons Evening package
	 Birmingham Evening Mail
	 West Midland Express and Star
	 Stoke on Trent Evening Sentinel
	 Oxford Mail
	 Derby Evening Telegraph
	 Worcester Evening News
	 Peterborough Evening Telegraph
	 Ipswich Evening Star
	 Norwich Evening News
	 Southern Daily Echo
	 Exeter Express and Echo
	 Lincolnshire Echo
	 Bolton Evening News
	 Chester Chronicle
	 Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph
	 Western Mail
	 Wrexham Evening Leader
	 South Wales Evening Post
	 South Wales Argus
	 Bangor Mail
	 Cambrian News
	 Carmarthen Journal
	 Pontypridd Observer
	 Manchester Evening News
	 Plymouth Evening Herald
	 Torquay Herald
	 Coventry Evening Telegraph
	 Nottingham Evening Post
	 Southwark News
	 Leicester Mercury
	 Norwich Evening News
	 Bristol Evening Post
	 Bath Chronicle
	 Chelmsford Weekly News
	 Hereford Times
	 Basingstoke Gazette
	 Daily Post—Welsh Edition
	 Caernarvon Herald
	 Holyhead and Bangor Mail
	 South Wales Echo

Home Information Packs

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many advertisements placed on behalf of her Department in relation to home improvement packs have been cancelled;
	(2)  how many advertisements have been placed on behalf of her Department in relation to home improvement packs.

Yvette Cooper: Between April 2006 and May 2007 the Department placed a total of 852 advertisements in the press and relevant magazines—of these, a total of 538 were in magazines or newspapers published before the announcement on 22 May.
	299 advertisements have now been re-scheduled and will be used to promote the phased introduction of home information packs on 1 August.
	15 adverts went to print before the announcement was made but are in publications appearing after 22 May. It would be irresponsible for the Government not to inform people about this important change to the way homes are bought and sold. It is vital consumer information.

Home Information Packs

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much has been spent on the marketing and advertising campaign to promote home information packs and energy performance certificates in the south-east Government office region.

Yvette Cooper: The Department has spent £82,335 on the promotion of home information packs and energy performance certificates in the south-east Government office region.

Homelessness

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the number of homeless people, broken down by constituency.

Yvette Cooper: Information about local authorities' actions under homelessness legislation is collected quarterly at local authority level, in respect of households rather than people.
	Information reported each quarter by local authorities about their activities under homelessness legislation includes the number of households accepted by local authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty. The duty owed to an accepted household is to secure suitable accommodation. If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority may secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available.
	The data are published in our quarterly statistical release on statutory homelessness, which includes a supplementary table showing the breakdown of key data, including acceptances and temporary accommodation, by each local authority. This is published on our website and placed in the Library each quarter. The latest release was published on 11 June 2007 and contains data for the period January to March 2007:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1002882&PressNoticeID=2438
	Since 1998, information has also been collected on the number of people who sleep rough—that is, those who are literally roofless on a single night—and these are also published on our website, by local authority.
	Summary tables showing the total number of households (a) accepted under homelessness provisions and (b) in temporary accommodation, from 1997-98 to 2006-07, and (c) rough sleeper estimates from 1998 onwards, for each local authority are provided with this answer and have been placed in the Library.

Homelessness

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what proportion of all lettings in  (a) each London local authority and  (b) across all local authorities were let to homeless households in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what proportion of all registered social landlord lettings, excluding sheltered and supported housing, were let to homeless households in  (a) each London local authority and  (b) in England in each of the last five years.

Yvette Cooper: The main sources of data on total lettings and lettings to homeless households are:
	1. COntinuous REcording (CORE) data on general needs lets by Registered Social Landlords (RSLs)
	2. Annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix (HSSA) data collected by local authorities
	The proportions of all RSL lettings (excluding sheltered and supported housing) to statutorily homeless households in each London borough for the past five years are provided in the following tables.
	A household is found to be statutorily homeless by a local authority if it is eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless (or threatened with homelessness) and in priority need. The main duty owed to households accepted as being statutory homeless is to secure suitable accommodation.
	
		
			  (i) Proportion of all registered social landlords lettings (excluding supported and sheltered housing) let to statutorily homeless households by London borough 
			  Percentage 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 Barking and Dagenham 3 4 3 5 2 
			 Barnet 19 21 16 14 12 
			 Bexley 27 25 22 23 17 
			 Brent 24 33 30 29 24 
			 Bromley 34 43 38 44 47 
			 Camden 12 10 16 14 15 
			 City of London 8 11 0 0 0 
			 Croydon 22 28 28 27 36 
			 Ealing 22 27 16 18 17 
			 Enfield 20 31 17 19 22 
			 Greenwich 9 7 7 7 8 
			 Hackney 19 20 17 24 26 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 22 23 24 25 19 
			 Haringey 35 32 30 17 20 
			 Harrow 39 26 28 12 26 
			 Havering 7 4 5 17 2 
			 Hillingdon 39 34 21 25 34 
			 Hounslow 24 27 26 30 23 
			 Islington 21 23 23 10 13 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 28 26 33 24 18 
			 Kingston upon Thames 25 38 21 31 32 
			 Lambeth 31 23 30 21 20 
			 Lewisham 17 19 14 19 26 
			 Merton 13 15 14 26 31 
			 Newham 14 18 12 10 11 
			 Redbridge 17 14 20 10 8 
			 Richmond upon Thames 32 35 38 47 50 
			 Southwark 25 18 20 15 14 
			 Sutton 16 20 8 13 21 
			 Tower Hamlets 19 17 18 23 23 
			 Waltham Forest 28 25 22 16 15 
			 Wandsworth 14 19 17 21 22 
			 Westminster 26 22 27 18 24 
			 London average 23 24 22 22 23 
			 England 12 13 14 15 17 
			  Source: RSL CORE data 
		
	
	The proportions of all local authority lettings to statutorily homeless households in each London borough for the past five years are provided in the following table. These figures include sheltered and supported housing.
	
		
			  (i) Proportion of all local authority lettings (not excluding sheltered housing) let to statutorily homeless households: By London borough 2005-06 
			  Percentage 
			   2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Barking and Dagenham 0 4 21 32 4 
			 Barnet 42 36 33 26 21 
			 Bexley n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Brent 63 52 46 41 53 
			 Bromley n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Camden 33 46 35 36 36 
			 City of London 2 12 5 9 7 
			 Croydon 16 7 15 16 12 
			 Ealing 45 47 52 36 42 
			 Enfield 46 46 44 38 38 
			 Greenwich 35 33 37 34 30 
			 Hackney 36 44 46 44 40 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 37 37 35 32 23 
			 Haringey 34 32 37 40 44 
			 Harrow 36 34 35 31 28 
			 Havering 10 0 0 26 8 
			 Hillingdon 24 43 39 29 24 
			 Hounslow 43 33 46 54 41 
			 Islington 49 51 53 45 34 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 25 34 30 37 41 
			 Kingston upon Thames 51 51 47 45 39 
			 Lambeth 38 46 56 58 66 
			 Lewisham 30 35 37 42 21 
			 Merton 19 20 24 29 27 
			 Newham 33 20 13 12 16 
			 Redbridge 29 35 27 17 18 
			 Richmond upon Thames n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Southwark 59 54 49 46 36 
			 Sutton 37 26 8 15 20 
			 Tower Hamlets 27 27 32 25 57 
			 Waltham Forest 58 56 41 33 38 
			 Wandsworth 33 37 35 34 37 
			 Westminster 53 44 53 47 47 
			 London average 35 35 36 35 32 
			 England 16 19 23 24 22 
			  Source: HSSA

Housing: Camden

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding the Government intends to provide to Camden council for the purpose of bringing social housing up to Decent Homes standard.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 11 June 2007
	 The Government have increased the basic funding for council housing by 30 per cent. in real terms since 1997. Where local authorities need more than this funding to make all social housing decent, additional funding is available through setting up a high-performance Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO); entering into a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract; or transferring stock to Registered Social Landlords.
	Camden has one PFI scheme which covers the refurbishment of the Chalcots Estate, in Swiss Cottage. The scheme was awarded £65 million in PFI credits, and will receive PFI subsidy from 2006-07 onwards.

Housing: Construction

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 21 May 2007, O fficial Report, columns 1101-02W, on housing: construction, what plans she has to introduce penalties for failure to comply with a completion notice.

Yvette Cooper: We have no plans to introduce penalties for failure to comply with a completion notice. Completion notices are rare, but effective in most cases. If a completion notice is ignored, the relevant planning permission ceases to be valid, except insofar as it authorises the development already carried out. Any further development carried out after the period specified in the completion notice is over may be liable to enforcement action.
	It would be impracticable to give the local planning authority power to compel the completion of a development once started, for example where the developer lacked the finance to complete the work.
	However, a local planning authority may compel the removal of any partially erected buildings by making a discontinuance order under section 102 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. If an order, confirmed by the Secretary of State, is not complied with, the authority can enforce it in accordance with sections 189 and 190 of the Act. Where a discontinuance order has not been complied with, section 190 of the 1990 Act enables the local planning authority to take the steps required under the order (such as removal of buildings, works or any plant or machinery, or steps to protect the environment), and to recover any expenses reasonably incurred by them in doing so from the owner of the land.

Housing: Expenditure

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much from public funds was paid to Catholic housing agencies in each year since 1997.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 1 February 2007
	44 of the 650 registered social landlords funded by the Housing Corporation in the three years 2003-06 could be considered in some way faith-based on the basis of their constitutions. These received £52.2 million in grant over the three-year period out of a total spend of £4.9 billion, or just over 1 per cent. We do not currently have figures covering the years 1997 to 2003.
	'Faith-based' here includes several categories:
	(i) organisations which are run only or substantially by members of that faith;
	(ii) those required to operate in the spirit of a faith or in furtherance of that faith; or
	(iii) those that require that homes are let only or substantially to members of that faith, or ethnic groups closely identified with a particular faith.
	In 2003-06, £40.8 million was paid to organisations in the second category, i.e. which operate in the spirit of a faith.
	The majority of faith-based organisations are Christian, but we do not hold details on how many are Catholic.

Housing: Low Incomes

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total cost has been to run the Design for Manufacture competition since its inception; and how many of the resulting houses she expects to be sold for £60,000.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 19 March 2007
	English Partnerships are running the Design for Manufacture competition on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government. All English Partnerships' costs are expected to be balanced out by receipts of more than £50 million from the sale of the land. This exceeds the reserve price across this portfolio of sites by more than £3 million.
	The competition involved additional costs compared to ordinary site disposals. These costs are for specialist technical advice to ensure the quality of these innovative homes (£470,000), for monitoring and evaluation to learn lessons from the construction phase (£70,000) and for research and information (£136,400). This latter category includes holding a public exhibition attended by over 5,000 people and circulating some 30,000 copies of the document setting out the lessons learnt so far from the competition.
	Part of the competition involved a target construction cost of £60,000 for a high-quality 76.5 sq metre home, with larger and smaller homes being built at a similar cost-efficiency. The competition is creating 10 new mixed communities developments with homes of different sizes and tenures to suit families and single people. Overall, 50 per cent. of the homes being provided will be affordable, including shared ownership/equity, social housing, low cost home ownership and other supported housing such as for the elderly.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for North-East Milton Keynes (Mr. Lancaster) on 6 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1890W, which set out precise details of one of the sites in the competition.
	The other nine sites are at different stages of construction and are spread around the country. The prices of the units for sale will reflect the land value, the local market at the time they go on sale and the equity share as well as the construction cost. In total only about half the homes will be for sale at full market price.
	Based on current sales prices we anticipate that on every site where homes are being sold, there will be homes available at shared ownership or shared equity stakes of between £60,000 and £70,000. The exception is on the Hastings site where all the homes will be for affordable rent.

Housing: Low Incomes

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether tests of affordability for homes to rent or buy are required to take account of local levels of household income.

Yvette Cooper: The definition of affordable housing for planning purposes established by "Planning Policy Statement 3: Housing" and the accompanying guidance "Delivering Affordable Housing" includes the requirement that affordable housing should:
	"meet the needs of eligible households including availability at a cost low enough for them to afford, determined with regard to local incomes....."
	What this means is that, in considering whether a home falls within the definition of 'affordable housing' or not, local authorities are required to assess whether or not the home is affordable to those eligible for such housing. One of the factors used in this assessment must be levels of local household incomes.

Housing: Northamptonshire

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her estimate is of the likely number of additional dwellings to be located in  (a) Northamptonshire,  (b) North Northamptonshire and  (c) Wellingborough in each of the next 20 years.

Yvette Cooper: As set out in the Regional Spatial Strategy for the East Midlands (RSS8), the annual average housing provision for the period 2001 to 2021, split into five year periods, is as follows:
	
		
			  Northamptonshire ( 1) 
			   P er annum 
			 2001-06 3,095 
			 2006-11 3,475 
			 2011-16 3,665 
			 2016-21 3,665 
			 (1 )Excludes the Northampton figure quashed as a result of a high court challenge. This figure is being reviewed as part of the Revision to the Regional Spatial Strategy. 
		
	
	
		
			  North Northamptonshire 
			   P er annum 
			 2001-06 2,225 
			 2006-11 2,605 
			 2011-16 2,795 
			 2016-21 2,795 
		
	
	
		
			  Wellingborough 
			   P er annum 
			 2001-06 595 
			 2006-11 595 
			 2011-16 685 
			 2016-21 685 
		
	
	The housing figures beyond 2021 to 2026 are currently being assessed through the Revision to the Regional Spatial Strategy for the East Midlands.

Housing: Northamptonshire

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will visit Wellingborough and Kettering to discuss future housing and infrastructure developments with members of local communities.

Angela Smith: holding answer  12 June 2007
	The Secretary of State has no plans at present to visit Wellingborough and Kettering.
	However, my noble Friend, Baroness Andrews, chairs the Milton Keynes South Midlands Inter-Regional Board which gives the opportunity for discussions relating to sustainable housing and infrastructure developments on an on-going basis. The community is represented at these meeting by members from local authorities across the Milton Keynes and south midlands area.

Housing: Surveys

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 20 April 2007,  Official Report, column 794W, on housing: surveys, what obligations residents in  (a) private housing and  (b) social housing are under to allow a property inspection to be undertaken as part of the English House Condition Survey.

Ruth Kelly: Participation in the English House Condition Survey is entirely voluntary for all householders regardless of their tenure. Addresses are selected at random and householders are contacted through a letter from our contractors, the Office for National Statistics, and invited to take part in both an initial household interview and in the follow-up property inspection.

Infrastructure

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to extend consultation on the draft national policy statements for infrastructural planning proposals in England to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland where there is a potential impact on those areas arising from the proposals.

Yvette Cooper: Chapter 10 of the white paper "Planning for a Sustainable Future" (Cm 7120) sets out our proposals in relation to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
	The Government intends that any national policy statements for air transport and for energy would be developed for the whole of Great Britain or the UK as appropriate. These policies would be developed with the full involvement of the devolved Administrations and the consultation proposed in Chapter 3 of the white paper would encompass the whole of Great Britain or the UK. Welsh, Scottish and Northern Ireland Ministers would be statutory consultees in the development of relevant national policy statements.

Planning Permission

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what consultation will be conducted in communities on planning applications under the Planning Bill.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 14 June 2007
	 The planning White Paper, "Planning for a Sustainable Future" proposes a three stage system for nationally significant infrastructure projects, with opportunities for public engagement at each stage.
	There would be national consultation on the country's infrastructure needs. The Government would consult the public on national policy statements, which would be scrutinised by Parliament. Promoters would be required to consult the public before submitting a planning application, allowing local communities to influence a promoter's proposals early on. At the examination stage, direct questioning and a new open floor stage would help members of the public engage on a more equal footing with the professional advocates who currently dominate the process.

Planning: Use Classes Order

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects to publish her review into use Classes Order legislation; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: We have no plans to undergo a full scale review of the Use Classes Order.
	We are looking at the operation of the Use Classes Order in some areas where concerns have been raised, such as around houses of multiple occupation. We have not set a timetable for this work.

Prisons: Planning Permission

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what planning guidelines apply to the expansion of prisons; and in what circumstances they have permitted development rights.

Ruth Kelly: Local planning authorities have been encouraged to make adequate provision for new prison developments through the planning system by means of DETR Circular 03/98 "Planning for Future Prison Development". For extensions to existing prisons, the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has access to the permitted development rights in Part 34 (Development by the Crown) of Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995 (SI 1995 No 418 as amended). The main restrictions to the permitted development right are that any extensions may not exceed 25 per cent. of the cubic content or 1,000 square metres of the floor area of the existing building (reducing to 10 per cent. of the cubic content or 500 square metres of the floor area in certain sensitive landscape areas and conservation areas). NOMS may also use other general permitted development rights for minor works.

Regeneration: Mining

Anne Moffat: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of regeneration schemes in coalfield communities.

Yvette Cooper: Considerable progress has been made over the past 10 years revitalising the former English coalfields, raising aspirations in these communities through regeneration, education and job creation. People are being given access to the skills and jobs they need, the environmental legacy of the coal industry is being cleaned up and the housing, economic and social needs of the local communities are being addressed. The English Partnership's Coalfield Programme; the Coalfields Regeneration Trust and the Coalfields Enterprise Fund, are delivering real change with combined budgets of over £0.5 billion. A recent independent evaluation of the Department's coalfield specific regeneration programmes available at: http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1508895, gave strong support to the approach we have taken and confirmed the effectiveness of these programmes.

Regional Government: Offices

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which English regional chambers have offices located outside the United Kingdom.

Yvette Cooper: All eight regional assemblies have use of office facilities in Brussels. These facilities are shared with other regional partners.

Service Charges

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the evidential basis is for her statement that capping leaseholder service charges for ex-council flats would cost £40 million; what timescale that cost was estimated to arise over; and whether there is a distinction between the costs of  (a) resident and  (b) buy-to-rent leaseholders in the estimates made.

Yvette Cooper: The statement is based on the results of a survey conducted in March 2007 on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government by London Councils, the representative body of the London boroughs. No distinction was made between resident and buy-to-rent leaseholders.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Alcoholic Drinks: Licensing

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many alcohol licences have been revoked in each London borough since November 2005.

Shaun Woodward: We do not currently hold this information centrally. The Licensing Act 2003 devolved the administration for licensing to individual licensing authorities who should hold information about licensed premises in their area.
	DCMS plans a data collection exercise over the summer to gather this, and other licensing information. Results will be published in the form of a new National Statistics bulletin, currently scheduled for release in October 2007.
	Broad estimates collated by the department in November 2006, based on a small sample of licensing authorities, suggested that following review, approximately 100 licences had been revoked across England and Wales in the first year under the new Licensing Act.

Cultural Heritage: Ownership

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's policy is on whether cultural objects seized from  (a) Germany and  (b) other countries after the second world war by the Soviet Union are Russian property following the passing of the 1998 Federal Law on Cultural Valuables Displaced to the USSR by the Russian Parliament.

David Lammy: The effect of the Federal Law on Cultural Valuables Displaced to the USSR 1998 on the ownership of cultural objects situated in Russia is a question of Russian law, whether the objects in question come from Germany or other countries. It is not a matter of departmental policy. If an issue was raised in relation to the applicable law of a foreign country in legal proceedings in this country, it would be regarded as a question of fact, to be determined by the judge with the assistance of appropriate expert evidence.

Cultural Heritage: Ownership

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which  (a) organisations and  (b) individuals responded to her Department's consultation on the restitution of cultural objects spoliated in the Nazi era.

David Lammy: The organisations and individuals who responded to the consultation are as follows:
	Art Loss Register
	British Library
	Charity Commission
	Commission for Looted Art in Europe
	CyMAL Museums Archives and Libraries Wales
	CyMRU National Museums Wales
	ICOM UK
	Marbles Reunited
	Museums Association
	National Gallery
	National Museums of Science and Industry
	Royal Academy of Art
	Sotheby's
	Tate
	The National Archives
	Withers LLP
	Fiona Fuller
	Michael Heaps FRICS

Cultural Heritage: Ownership

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she intends to publish the  (a) summary paper of and  (b) responses to her Department's consultation on the restitution of cultural objects spoliated in the Nazi era.

David Lammy: I intend to publish the responses to the consultation and a summary paper before the summer recess.

Departments: Advertising

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much revenue her Department received from advertisements on her Department's  (a) public information leaflets and  (b) public websites in each of the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement.

David Lammy: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not receive advertising revenue from public information leaflets or public websites.

Departments: Sick Leave

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what average number of days per year was taken by staff in her Department as sick leave in each of the last five years for which records are available.

David Lammy: Sick absence figures are contained in the annual report "Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service" published by the Cabinet Office. Table 3-4: AWDL for small and micro Departments of the report gives details of both the average working days absence per staff year and the total staff years for each department. The most recent report for the calendar year 2005 is available in the Library of the House. This report and those from 1999 are available on the Cabinet Office website at:
	http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/occupationalhealth/publications/index.asp

Digital Broadcasting: BBC

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much the BBC has spent on producing and broadcasting televisual content for digital transmission.

Shaun Woodward: This is a matter for the BBC. I have therefore asked the BBC's Director of Finance to consider the question raised by my hon. Friend and to write to him direct. Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Digital Broadcasting: BBC

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when the BBC commenced broadcasting digital television.

Shaun Woodward: Sky Digital launched on 1 October 1998, followed by ONDigital on 15 November the same year. Both of these offerings included BBC services.

Digital Broadcasting: Copeland

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assistance her Department has provided to residents of rural areas in Copeland in advance of digital switchover in October.

Shaun Woodward: According to the Digital UK/Ofcom Q1 2007 Tracker, awareness across the UK is higher in rural areas than in urban areas (88 per cent. in rural areas compared to 81 per cent. in urban areas). All households in the Copeland area will receive a doordrop in the next month as part of the ongoing communications campaign to drive up awareness in the final three months before switchover.
	Digital UK run drop-in sessions in places throughout Copeland including the rural areas of Moor Row, Seascale, Parton and Eskdale.

Digital Broadcasting: Copeland

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assistance her Department has provided to tenants  (a) of private landlords and  (b) in social housing in preparation for digital switchover in Copeland in October.

Shaun Woodward: Private tenants cannot be identified by name or address. To communicate with tenants and residents, Digital UK has distributed a specific leaflet to libraries and CAB in the area, and on its website. Digital UK ran an advertising campaign targeting tenants in the  Whitehaven News, letting them know where to find the leaflet. Digital UK provided particular information to tenants and residents in the Switchover supplement in the  Whitehaven News on March 15, which is also available for download on the  Whitehaven News website. In addition, Digital UK has written to the main lettings agents in the area with a letter and a factsheet about switchover, with a request to copy to their lists of tenants and landlords.
	For tenants in social housing, all providers in the area have been contacted twice, including close contact with Copeland Homes, and followed up by a phone call or visit, if they had no plans. In addition, all care homes in the area have been identified, written to and contact made.

Digital Broadcasting: Copeland

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assistance her Department has provided to  (a) schools,  (b) hospitals and  (c) other public facilities in Copeland in preparation for digital switchover in October.

Shaun Woodward: Digital UK have prepared a teaching pack for primary schools which 92 per cent. of schools in Copeland have agreed to use.
	Digital UK and the relevant central Government Departments have also been proactively contacting local service providers, including West Cumberland hospital, to ensure they are aware of the need to prepare for switchover.
	A number of other public facilities are used by Digital UK to convey communication material including local libraries, churches, the local newspaper  Whitehaven News, social and community groups, West Cumbria Older People's Forum, Copeland Disability Forum and the Women's Institute.

Digital Broadcasting: Copeland

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much revenue was raised by television licence fees in the area of Copeland in which digital switchover will take place in October in the latest period for which figures are available.

Shaun Woodward: The information requested is not held centrally. The BBC has statutory responsibility for the administration of the television licensing system and TV Licensing carries out day to day administration under contract to the corporation. I have therefore asked the BBC's Head of Revenue Management to consider the question raised by the hon. Member and to write to him direct. Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Digital Broadcasting: Copeland

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the elderly population of Copeland is  (a) aware of the need to make their televisions digitally compatible,  (b) assisted to undertake this exercise and  (c) protected from unfair practices by digital television retailers and installers of related equipment; and if she will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: holding answer 14 June 2007
	The Digital UK/Ofcom Tracker data for Q1 2007 shows that 97 per cent. of people in Copeland are aware of switchover. The indicative awareness figure for those aged 55 plus in Copeland is 98 per cent. compared to 92 per cent. of 16-34 year olds. In addition to working with major charities assisting elderly people such as Age Concern, Digital UK is communicating directly with elderly residents in the area.
	All households in the area, including older people, have received the Border leaflet, a letter about the switchover, and will receive a leaflet three months out with detailed information on how to switch. Households will also receive a reminder one month prior to switchover. Captions are appearing on TV screens to remind people of the date of switchover.
	Developed by the DTI and promoted by Digital UK, the 'digital tick' logo is used by all major electrical retailers and manufacturers to mark digital television equipment (TVs, set-top boxes and recorders). Retailers will be the first port of call for many consumers. Digital UK has developed a Switchover Training scheme for retail staff, which is being used by thousands of staff nationwide. Trained staff can be identified by badges carrying the 'digital tick' logo. All four retailers in the area have agreed to train all their staff in the next one-two months.
	In order to contact those eligible for the Help scheme, all households and care homes were sent a Help scheme letter, leaflet and a form informing them about the Help scheme.
	Digital UK recently held a seminar with senior representatives from Trading Standards, police, the Home Office, key charities and others in the consumer protection sector to give a thorough airing to consumer protection issues and to progress effective practices and protocols to counter sharp practice such as rogue trading, distraction burglary and scams. Further seminars are arranged for this summer and in the meantime a number of protection initiatives are under way.

Digital Broadcasting: Government Assistance

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of UK households eligible for assistance in switching over to digital television will be required to pay to access assistance; what type of assistance will be available to each group; and what charges will be made to those eligible.

Shaun Woodward: holding answer 14 June 2007
	Of the UK households eligible for assistance from the Digital Switchover Help scheme, we estimate that 55 per cent. will be required to pay for it. This help will comprise the provision of the appropriate equipment to convert one TV set and, where necessary, the relevant help to install and use such equipment and an aerial installation. The level of charge will be £40.

Newspaper Press: Competition

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will bring forward measures to increase competition in the newspaper industry; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: I have been asked to reply.
	The UK has in place a robust regime for the promotion of effective competition in all markets and for the effective control of mergers. The UK's independent competition regulators, the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission, have powers to enforce the prohibitions in competition law on anti-competitive agreements and behaviour and to investigate markets and take appropriate action to remedy problems that may exist in those markets. They also have powers to assess the effect of mergers on competition in relevant markets. For mergers involving newspapers or other media enterprises, there is also provision under the Enterprise Act 2002 for the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to intervene in order to require a separate consideration of the effect of the merger on the public interest—including on the plurality of different persons having control of media enterprises.

Sports: Clubs

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  how many  (a) sporting,  (b) aero-modelling,  (c) bowling and  (d) model flying clubs have opted out of accepting anyone under the age of 18 years old as a member in the last two years;
	(2)  how many instructors at model flying clubs have ceased to instruct children in the last two years.

Richard Caborn: Neither my Department nor Sport England hold this information.

DEFENCE

War Pensions/Armed Forces Compensation Scheme

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of  (a) war pensions and  (b) Armed Forces Compensation Scheme claims were settled by the Veterans Agency within 50 working days in each year since 2001.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 4 June 2007
	The information requested for the War Pensions Scheme (WPS) is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) was only introduced in April 2005, consequently information is only held from that date. From 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006, 89.9 per cent. of cases were cleared within 50 days. For the period 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2007, 87.3 per cent. of cases were cleared within 50 days.
	The WPS Key target for 2006-07; to reduce the average time it takes to issue decisions on claims to war pensions to no more than 53 working days, was exceeded with an achievement of 49 working days. The AFCS key target for 2006-07; to issue decisions on AFCS claims in average of no more than 35 working days; was exceeded with an achievement of 34 working days.

Armed Forces: Housing

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence who is responsible for carrying out inspections of family accommodation at Pirbright barracks.

Derek Twigg: Inspections on Service Families Accommodation at Pirbright are carried out by representatives of Modern Housing Solutions, the Housing Prime Contractor.

Armed Forces: Housing

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of family accommodation at Pirbright barracks is  (a) currently unoccupied and  (b) unfit for occupation.

Derek Twigg: 21 per cent. of Service Families Accommodation (SFA) at Pirbright (105 properties) are currently unoccupied, of which 67 properties (13 per cent. of the total SFA stock at Pirbright) are unavailable for occupation.
	The 67 properties include those under offer to or accepted by a service family; is awaiting return to Annington Homes Ltd in accordance with the 1996 Sale Agreement; is awaiting maintenance or upgrade work; or is held pending a future deployment of service personnel into the area.

Armed Forces: Housing

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average wait for repairs to be carried out on family accommodation at Pirbright barracks was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Derek Twigg: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Armed Forces: Housing

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions newly arriving service personnel and their families have arrived at Pirbright barracks to find that their accommodation was uninhabitable in the last 12 months.

Derek Twigg: None.

Armed Forces: Housing

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many reported break-ins to forces' accommodation there were in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Derek Twigg: From information held by the service police the reported break-ins for each year are:
	
		
			   Reported break-ins 
			 1997 1,650 
			 1998 1,619 
			 1999 1,334 
			 2000 1,369 
			 2001 1,204 
			 2002 1,535 
			 2003 1,732 
			 2004 1,354 
			 2005 933 
			 2006 729 
			 2007 (1)260 
			 (1) To date. 
		
	
	These figures do not include incidents which are not reported to the service police by the Home Department Police Forces or the Ministry of Defence Police, who do not differentiate service accommodation from other types of residence.

Medical Assessment Programme

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent on referrals by the Medical Assessment Programme in each year since it was established.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 14 June 2007
	This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The cost of running the Medical Assessment Programme (MAP) itself over the last financial year, excluding any onward referrals, was approximately £150,000. This included the cost of premises, staff, and the expenses for individual referrals.

Medical Assessment Programme

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel staff the Medical Assessment Programme for  (a) mental and  (b) physical health; and what increases are planned in each area.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 14 June 2007
	Since 2005, two members of staff have been working at the Medical Assessment Programme (MAP). Dr. Ian Palmer has been working one day a week at the MAP for nearly a year in addition to duties within the NHS. He will now be employed at the MAP on a full-time basis to see patients referred for mental or general health assessments. Dr. Palmer is a general practitioner and a consultant psychiatrist with a military background. He is supported in his role by his full-time secretary. We will monitor carefully the number of referrals and increase the staff resources, if required.

Medical Assessment Programme

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many veterans from  (a) the 1990-91 Gulf War,  (b) Operation Telic and  (c) other operations have passed through the Medical Assessment Programme.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 14 June 2007
	As at 12 June 2007, some 3,500 1990-91 Gulf veterans (including civilians), 41 Operation Telic veterans, and 138 Porton Down volunteers have attended the Medical Assessment Programme. Many of those concerned will also have taken part in other operations but this information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Armed Forces: Winter Sports

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 22 May 2007,  Official Report, column 1182W, on armed forces: winter sports, how much public money was spent on the Army Ski Championship 2007; which commercial sponsors the event had; how the Chief of the General Staff travelled to the event; what the cost was of that travel; which senior officers attended the event; and how those senior officers travelled to the event.

Derek Twigg: The public contribution to the running of the 2007 Army Ski Championships amounted to £22,000, which paid for the transportation of equipment. The commercial sponsors for the event were Norwich Union and BAE Systems. Land Rover loaned three vehicles free of charge for use by the Army Skiing Championships during the event. Mitsubishi Motors also loaned a vehicle free of charge for use to the Chairman of the Army Winter Sports Association (AWSA) for the duration of the Championships. The championships were held in Chantmerle in South East France.
	The Chief of the General Staff, accompanied by his Aide de Camp, flew from the UK to Germany and was driven from there to the championships, subsequently returning by air from Turin to the UK. The total cost for air travel was £1,705.60. CGS' driver travelled separately, driving one of the Land Rovers, incurring costs of £145 for the Eurotunnel crossing and approximately £375 on fuel. Hotel costs for the party amounted to £935.65.
	Senior officers have been taken to mean those of the rank of Brigadier and above. In addition to Chief of the General Staff, nine such officers attended and these individuals are listed. All travelled by air unless otherwise stated.
	Assistant Chief of the General Staff (designate), travelled at his own cost; General Officer Commanding, United Kingdom Support Command (Germany), accompanied by his Aide de Camp and driver, attending in his capacity as Chairman of the AWSA, travelled in a sponsored vehicle provided for the event at no public cost;
	Director Royal Artillery;
	Director Infantry;
	Director Army Aviation; Director Royal Logistics Corps;
	Director Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (Army);
	Director Development, Concept and Doctrine Centre Land; travelled to/from the championships by car from Germany, subsequently returning by air to the UK);
	Chief G7 Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, attending in his capacity as Chairman of Army Alpine Skiing, travelled to/from the championships by car from Germany.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by his Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence purchased some 133 GWh of electricity from renewable energy sources in financial year 2005-06. This amount represents 6 per cent. of the Department's total electricity consumption for the year in question and is reported in the Sustainable Development Commission's Sustainable Development in Government Report 2006.
	A copy of the report is available in the Library of the House.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his strategy is for renewable energy and meeting energy targets in departmental buildings; and if he will make a statement.

Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence has agreed to achieve the Sustainable Operations on the Government estate key target to source at least 10 per cent. of its electricity from renewable sources by 31 March 2010.
	We are developing a departmental strategy to maximise energy supply from renewable sources and this is expected to be completed in late 2007. Priorities include: procurement of more electricity from renewable sources; supporting the use of sites for renewable energy systems, where appropriate; and providing renewable energy systems for buildings where it is technically and economically feasible.
	We are also discussing alternative sources of fuel and technology through our partnership agreement with the Carbon Trust.

Housing

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answers of  (a) 19 January 2007,  Official Report, column 1364W, and  (b) 5 February 2007,  Official Report, column 688W, on housing, 
	(1)  when he expects to provide the information;
	(2)  when he expects to be able to provide the information requested.

Derek Twigg: I wrote to the hon. Member today. I apologise for the delay.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

GCSE

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of children in  (a) grammar,  (b) local authority,  (c) church and  (d) academy schools obtained five GCSEs including English and mathematics at A*-C in London in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: The answers to parts  (a),  (b) and  (c) are given in the following table:
	
		
			  Percentage of 15( 1) -year-olds obtaining five or more GCSEs at Grades A*-C including English and Maths GCSE in London Government office region 
			  School type  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Grammar schools 100.0 98.8 98.1 98.6 99.1 
			 Faith schools 56.9 54.4 52.4 49.9 57.0 
			 Maintained schools 38.5 39.3 41.0 43.3 45.3 
			 (1) Aged 15 at the start of the academic year, i.e. 31 August.  Source: School and college achievement and attainment tables 
		
	
	Data for academies are given in a time series showing each academy's performance over the past five years where applicable. Individual academies are provided because there are only a small number of academies in London and there is a different sized cohort each year.
	
		
			  Percentage of 15( 1) -year-olds obtaining five or more GCSEs at Grades A*-C including English and Maths GCSE in city academies in London Government office region 
			  School name  Year open  2003( 2)  2004( 2)  2005( 2)  2006( 2) 
			 The Business Academy Bexley 2002 15 13 16 27 
			 Greig City Academy 2002 19 10 10 15 
			 City of London Academy (Southwark) 2003 — n/a 0 0 
			 The Academy at Peckham 2003 — 10 18 23 
			 Capital City Academy 2003 — 17 11 18 
			 West London Academy 2003 — 8 11 25 
			 Mossbourne Community Academy 2004 — — 0 0 
			 Lambeth Academy 2004 — — n/a 0 
			 London Academy 2004 — — 24 32 
			 Stockley Academy 2004 — — 9 16 
			 St. Paul's Academy 2005 — — — 39 
			 Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College 2005 — — — 91 
			 Haberdashers' Aske's Knights Academy 2005 — — — 14 
			 The Harefield Academy 2005 — — — 31 
			 n/a = figures not available. (1) Aged 15 at the start of the academic year, i.e. 31 August. (2)2003 includes GCSEs and GNVQs. 2004 onwards includes GCSEs and all equivalents.

Head Teachers: East Sussex

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many vacancies for head teachers there are in  (a) Eastbourne and  (b) East Sussex.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not available at constituency level.
	In East Sussex local authority, there were two full-time head teacher vacancies in local authority maintained nursery, primary, secondary and special schools in January 2006, the latest information available.
	The figure given shows advertised vacancies for full-time permanent appointments (or appointments of at least one term's duration) including those being filled on a temporary basis of less than one term.

Home Education: Greater London

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils are home-schooled in  (a) Greater London,  (b) the London borough of Havering and  (c) Romford.

Jim Knight: Parents may exercise their right to educate their children at home on a temporary or permanent basis. We do not collect information about the numbers of children whose parents provide education at home, and it would be impractical to do so given the transient nature of some of this type of provision. A recent study on the prevalence of home education in England, conducted by York Consulting estimated that there were around 16,000 children being educated at home that were known to the local authority. We have not made any estimate of the number of home educated children that are not known to their local authority.

Local Education Authorities: Transport

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many education authorities provide subsidised public transport for their staff.

Jim Knight: The Department for Education and Skills does not hold any information on the number of education authorities that provide subsidised public transport for their staff.

Mathematics

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what proportion of  (a) independent and  (b) maintained secondary schools entered candidates for the additional mathematics qualification in 2006.

Jim Knight: The information requested is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Qualification type  Maintained  Independent 
			 Additional Maths A-level 25 46 
			 Proportion of A-level student students(1) 0.017 0.132 
			
			 Additional Maths GCSE 239 74 
			 Proportion of GCSE students(2) 0.040 0.152 
			 (1) The proportion of A-level students is calculated as a percentage of 16 to 18-year-old pupils entered for a level 3 qualification. (2) The proportion of GCSE students is calculated as a percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4.

Private Education: GCE A-level

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of grade A A-levels in  (a) mathematics,  (b) physics,  (c) chemistry,  (d) English,  (e) French and  (f) German awarded in England were awarded to pupils at fee-paying independent schools in each of the last three years.

Jim Knight: The proportion of A-level A grades awarded to students(1) at independent fee paying schools for the subjects requested are in the following table.
	(1) Students aged 16-18 at the start of the academic year (i.e. 31 August).
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   2003/04  2004/05  2005/06 
			 Mathematics(1) 37 37 36 
			 Physics 39 37 38 
			 Chemistry 40 39 37 
			 English 28 26 24 
			 French 46 46 44 
			 German 47 44 44 
			 (1)( )Includes further mathematics.

Pupil Referral Units: Curriculum

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupil referral units offer on their curriculum  (a) English and mathematics,  (b) English and mathematics and at least one science,  (c) English and mathematics and ITC,  (d) English and mathematics and PSHE,  (e) English and mathematics, at least one science and ITC,  (f) English, mathematics, at least one science and PSHE,  (g) English, mathematics, one science, ITC and PSHE and  (h) a full national curriculum.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Pupils: Insulin

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that there are sufficient facilities for school students who require insulin injections during the school day to have the necessary medical support in schools;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the adequacy of levels of provision of trained personnel in schools to support the health needs of children;
	(3)  what guidance his Department gives to schools on the administration to students of insulin injections during the school day.

Jim Knight: The DfES and DH have jointly recommended to schools, in 'Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings' (2005) that they should, with support from their local authority and local health professionals, develop policies on managing medicines and put in place effective management systems to support individual children with medical needs, including diabetes. The guidance advises that schools should have sufficient support staff who are trained to manage medicines as part of their duties. We have no plans to monitor training of school staff in this specific area.

Qualifications and Curriculum Authority Board

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what external interests have been declared by each member of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority Board.

Jim Knight: Each member of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) Board completes a register of interests. This is available from QCA.

Unique Learner Number

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the progress of the unique learner number being developed for all school leavers.

Jim Knight: The internet based Learner Registration Service (LRS), which will assign the unique learner number will be launched in September 2007. The service will be available for everyone over the age of 14 in education and training.

Schools: Complaints

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what monitoring procedures are in place to ensure that his Department's guidance on school complaints procedures, LEA/01/0180/2003, is adhered to by schools and governing bodies.

Jim Knight: All governing bodies must establish and publicise a complaints procedure for the school. The extent to which the governing body has complied with this duty is part of the school's self evaluation process which underpins the current Ofsted inspection regime. At least once every three years Ofsted inspectors seek to validate the school's evaluation of its strengths and weaknesses through inspection. No separate monitoring procedures are in place to ensure schools comply with the Department's guidance on schools complaints procedures.

Schools: Sanitation

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will take steps to encourage local education authorities to make the upgrading of school toilet and washroom facilities integral to local asset management plans for schools.

Jim Knight: Guidance was published by the Department in April with recommendations on the specification of toilet blocks in secondary schools that will help tackle bullying in schools. New designs to be used in all Building Schools for the Future Schools will make toilets more attractive, cleaner and safer for pupils to use.
	Research on the use of 2006 devolved formula capital shows that around a fifth of schools have improved toilets each year from 2003-04 to 2006-07.
	In the first term of government, the last 450 schools with outside toilets had them replaced.
	The bulk of schools capital is allocated by formula to authorities and schools so that they can address their local asset management planning priorities, including the upgrading of toilet and washroom facilities.
	Central Government capital support for investment in schools has increased from under £700 million in 1996-97 to £6.4 billion in 2007-08 and will rise further to £8.0 billion by 2010-11. Progress is being made year-by-year in improving the quality of the school building stock. Given the high levels of funding, authorities have the opportunity to upgrade toilets.

Schools: Yorkshire

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on how many occasions in each of the last two years a pupil at each state secondary school in Yorkshire has been found to be in possession of  (a) a weapon and  (b) narcotics on school premises.

Jim Knight: The Department does not hold this information.

Teachers: Training

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many overseas trained teachers there are in each London borough; how many of these have not enrolled in training courses for qualified teacher status in each borough; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: holding answer 8 May 2007
	The information requested is not collected centrally.
	In 2005-06 information from the Training and Development Agency for Schools shows that there were 1,330 teachers in England on the Overseas Trained Teacher Programme, the employment-based route to qualified teacher status for these teachers.

Vocational Training

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many 14 to 16-year-olds received vocational training which included time away from the classroom during school hours in the last period for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not held centrally by the Department.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Subsidies

Martin Salter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many single farm payments have been reduced as a result of failures to meet good agricultural and environmental conditions required by cross-compliance; and how many of these failures relate to agricultural practices that place drinking water, rivers, and wetlands at risk of pollution.

Barry Gardiner: Under the 2006 Single Payment Scheme year, there were 54 payments reduced as a result of claimants failing to demonstrate that they were keeping their land in good agricultural and environmental condition. None of these failures were related to agricultural practices that led to any risk of pollution. However there were four non-compliances found which could have lead to a pollution risk and these claimants received warning letters.
	There were 106 payments reduced as a result of claimants failing to adhere to the Statutory Management Requirements concerning Groundwater and Nitrate Vulnerable Zones. A further six such non-compliances found merited warning letters for the claimants concerned.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 21 May 2007,  Official Report, column 1033W, on bovine tuberculosis (TB), what recommendations he received on bovine TB and badger culling at those meetings; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: A range of views and suggestions on bovine TB and badger culling, among other issues, were discussed with Ministers and officials at meetings with interested parties in August 2006.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the level of  (a) false positives and  (b) false negatives resulting from tuberculosis testing of the UK cattle population.

Ben Bradshaw: It is not possible to establish such data other than as part of a research programme where all animals are slaughtered and the disease status of each animal can be irrefutably established. No such technique is available but immunological tests are considered the best indicator of infected status.
	There are two immunologically based diagnostic tests used in the Great Britain (GB) bovine tuberculosis (bTB) testing programme. The primary screening test for bTB in cattle in the UK (and Ireland) is the single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin (SICCT) test, which is commonly known as the tuberculin "skin test". In October 2006, the Government extended the use of the gamma interferon (g-IFN) diagnostic blood test, alongside the skin test (as permitted by EU legislation), in certain prescribed circumstances.
	Research shows that when the skin test is applied to cattle in bTB-free herds in GB there is a one in 1,000 chance that a non-infected animal will be wrongly classified as a reactor. This is known as the test's false positive rate. An alternative way of defining this is to say that the skin test has a specificity of 99.9 per cent. Although the probability of getting at least one false positive result increases with the size of the herd being tested, it would be extremely rare to find more than one false positive in any herd. The skin test is designed to detect an immune response at a relatively early stage in the infection process. Therefore, the percentage of test reactors without visible tuberculous lesions is not an indicator of the false positive rate for this test.
	Various studies have shown that the sensitivity of the skin test (i.e. its ability to identify infected animals as positives) varies between 77 per cent. and 95 per cent., i.e. it can be expected to miss about one or two in every 10 infected cattle on a single round of testing (10-20 per cent. false negative rate).
	For all diagnostic tests there is a trade off between sensitivity and specificity, so different interpretations of the test can be used under different disease situations. Sensitivity is enhanced in herds with post-mortem or culture-confirmed infection by application of severe interpretation.
	With regard to the g-IFN blood test, performance evaluation carried out in a number of countries shows that at the laboratory cut offs used in GB, it has a sensitivity comparable to or marginally better than that of the SICCT (between 73 and 100 per cent., with a median value of about 87 per cent.). Because the two tests detect slightly different sub-groups of infected cattle, by combining the two tests a higher overall sensitivity can be achieved. A trial in GB, established to evaluate the specificity of the blood test, confirmed the findings of previous studies by concluding that the commercially available blood test had a specificity of between 95-97 per cent. (i.e. there is a likelihood that slightly more false positive reactors are identified when the gamma test is applied, as opposed to the skin test). It is for these reasons that the g-IFN blood test cannot be used for routine surveillance and is best used in parallel in infected herds to maximise the detection of infected animals.

Carbon Emissions

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government have taken to date to try to reach the UK target of a 20 per cent. reduction in carbon emissions by 2010 compared with 1990; and what further steps it intends to take.

Ian Pearson: The UK Climate Change programme, revised in 2006, sets out the Government's policies and measures to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions up to 2010. The target to reduce emissions to 20 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010 was always designed to be stretching and as we have acknowledged, it looks increasingly difficult to achieve.
	Our latest projections, published in the recent Energy White Paper, suggest that our CO2 emissions, including the impact of the EU Emissions Trading scheme, could fall to about 16 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010. This would represent definite progress towards the domestic target. It would also mean that we had reduced our emissions of the basket of greenhouse gases to more than 23 per cent. below base year levels, a percentage reduction almost double what we are required to achieve under the Kyoto protocol.
	However, it does show why we need to do much more to reduce emissions. The long-term framework that the Climate Change Bill will provide, and the new measures announced in the Energy White Paper, which will further reduce emissions up to 2020, are therefore essential.
	If every household, business and community took measures to reduce their CO2 emissions by reducing energy used in the home and in buildings, and by changing how journeys are made, we could still make further progress towards our 2010 target. The Government are continuing to encourage and enable those choices and changes in behaviour through initiatives such as the "Act on CO2" campaign, and by funding the work of the Carbon Trust and Energy Saving Trust.

Carbon Price

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what his policy is on the level of carbon price which should be used to calculate emission limits for the EU Emissions Trading Scheme;
	(2)  what the price of carbon is; and what assessment he has made of trends in the price of carbon over the last 12 months.

Ian Pearson: The Government do not set or seek a particular price for carbon allowances. Under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, the Government set a cap on the total emissions that may be emitted by the installations covered by the scheme in the UK, as does every other member state for their installations. The total EU cap sets a limit on allowances available in the market and the demand for allowances from installations to cover their emissions then determines the price.
	The price for a carbon allowance for one tonne of CO2 in phase I carbon price was €0.24 at market close on 12 June. The forward price for phase II 2008 allowances was €22.61 at close on 12 June.

Climate Change: Young People

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Welsh Assembly Government on extending the climate change champions young ambassadors scheme to Wales.

Ian Pearson: We have announced our intention to hold a second climate change champions competition. Initial discussions on whether the Welsh Assembly Government might like to run an extension of the competition have taken place at official level and these discussions will be taken further as we develop our plans.

Departments: Manpower

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff funded by the public purse in his Department are classified as people without posts.

Barry Gardiner: People without posts are required to join DEFRA's Priority Movers List. There are currently 136 staff on the Priority Movers List. Staff on the Priority Movers List have access to vacancies within DEFRA before they are advertised more widely and management support is given to staff without posts in order to maximise redeployment opportunities. Staff are engaged on short-term projects within the Department while looking for permanent positions.

Departments: Manpower

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff funded by the public purse in the Pesticides Safety Directorate are classified as people without posts.

Ian Pearson: I assume the hon. Member is referring to the number of staff employed by Pesticides Safety Directorate (PSD) for which the agency does not have the funding or who are deemed to be surplus to existing requirements. PSD has no such staff.

Departments: Recruitment

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department and its agencies paid to recruitment consultants in each year since 1997.

Barry Gardiner: DEFRA came into being in June 2001. From information held centrally, the amount (including VAT) paid by core DEFRA in each financial year commencing with 2002-03, when information was first available, is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2002-03 684,795.34 
			 2003-04 1,106,361.08 
			 2004-05 447,712.00 
			 2005-06 999,207.53 
			 2006-07 1,418,359.43 
		
	
	Expenditure by DEFRA's Executive agencies is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	DEFRA's use of recruitment agencies is limited to recruiting specialist and senior posts requiring specialist skills which are not readily available internally and therefore requires recruitment of the right talent and experience from outside of the organisation.

EU Emissions Trading Scheme

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what the UK Government's assessment is of the effectiveness of  (a) the total level of permitted emissions and  (b) the national distribution of permits under the EU Emissions Trading scheme;
	(2)  what new limit of total carbon output the UK Government are seeking for the 2008 European Emissions Trading scheme.

Ian Pearson: In Phase I (2005-07) of the EU Emissions Trading scheme (EU ETS), the UK National Allocation plan (NAP) is set to deliver emission savings of 65 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). For Phase II (2008-12), our cap is set to deliver emission savings of 145 million tonnes of CO2 over a five year period. Overall, the EU member states have to date emitted around 220MtCO2 below the total cap.
	The results to date have shown the trading mechanism and institutional framework is viable and functioning as envisaged. We believe this is a solid base on which to build for the future. In the UK, compliance has been excellent. In 2006, all operators surrendered sufficient allowances within the deadlines. There have been no successful legal challenges to the national distribution of allowances.
	In Phase II, the cap on the total number of allowances allocated to installations in the UK will be 246.17 million allowances (tonnes of CO2) each year. The EU ETS however, is a trading scheme and under the scheme rules, operators may emit more or less than the allocated amount and purchase or sell allowances to meet their requirements.

Eunomia Consultancy

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of each report that the Eunomia consultancy has produced for  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies.

Ben Bradshaw: The following reports have been produced by Eunomia for core-DEFRA. Placing copies of the Reports in the Libraries of the House would cost in excess of £4,000. On this occasion therefore a website link for each Report has been added.
	Municipal Waste Management Strategies and the Land Use Planning System for Waste in England—A Report to DEFRA and ODPM
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticlelD=270
	London borough of Hackney: Recycling and Waste Minimisation Strategy Review and Recycling and Composting Collection Options Analysis
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=278
	Somerset Waste Partnership: Contract For Recycling and Refuse Collection
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticlelD=286
	Somerset County Council: BPEO Analysis for Residual Waste In Somerset. Reports on Costs
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticlelD=271
	Western Riverside: Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy-Action plans
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=281
	Calderdale: Options Appraisal for Residual Waste. Final Report to Calderdale MBC
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=275
	A Report for Allerdale Borough Council: Bulky Goods Collections-Waste Minimisation
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=273
	London Borough of Ealing: Options for Incentivising Kerbside Recycling and Cost Modelling
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=276
	London Borough of Enfield: Options for Reducing Residual Kerbside Collected Refuse and Cost Modelling
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=277
	Barnet: Compulsory Recycling Scheme—Review and Second Phase Roll Out Plan
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=274
	Shropshire Municipal Waste Management Strategy
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=279
	London Borough of Barnet Waste Prevention Strategy 2005-2015
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=282
	Hertfordshire Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=284
	Leicestershire Strategy Consultation
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=283
	Somerset Procurement—Contract Integration
	http://lasupport.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=ViewArticle&ArticleID=280
	A Practice Guide for the Development of Municipal Waste Management Strategies
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/localauth/practice-guidance/index.htm
	The core-Department does not hold copies centrally of any report that Eunomia has produced for its agencies.

Fisheries

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many foreign-registered vessels have pair trawled within the UK's 12 mile limit in each month since the ban on British pair trawlers inside the 12 mile limit was implemented.

Ben Bradshaw: Information on the total number of foreign vessels that have pair trawled within the UK 12 mile limit in this period is not available, since their countries of registration are not required to submit this information to us and it is not possible for our own enforcement authorities to inspect all such vessels at all times.
	However, the number of pairs of foreign vessels which have been confirmed from our own inspections at sea and other sightings as engaging in pair trawling within the UK 12 mile limit is set out in the following table. This includes the proportion of pairs of foreign vessels which were observed in ICES area VIIe, within which the English ban on pair trawling applies.
	
		
			  Year/month  UK (pairs)  Total within ICES area VIIe 
			 2005   
			 February 2 2 
			 April 3 1 
			 December 6 0 
			
			 2006   
			 April 1 1 
			 July 1 1 
			 August 1 0 
			 November 1 0 
			
			 2007   
			 February 1 1 
			 April 1 1

Fisheries

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with his  (a) Scottish,  (b) Welsh and  (c) Northern Ireland counterparts on UK fisheries since May 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: I met with my Scottish counterpart, Richard Lochhead, on 6 June in advance of the 11-12 June Agriculture and Fisheries Council. He also accompanied me to the Council itself and we had regular discussions as the negotiations developed.
	I have not met my counterparts from Wales and Northern Ireland on fisheries matters since May 2007. My officials are however in regular contact with their counterparts from the devolved administrations on fisheries matters to ensure a coherent UK line.

Fisheries

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the timetable outlined in Annex III of the Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on a Community Action Plan to reduce discards of fish (COM(2002)656 final), dated 26 November 2002 has been met; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: There hasn't been the detailed analysis at Community level of the various options identified in the report that was anticipated. However, the more recent Commission Communication takes the discussion forward, to reflect those developments which have occurred in the interim, like increased data on the scale of the problem (and its geographical and fisheries distribution) and the application of technical measures to improve selectivity.

Fisheries

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been spent on fisheries enforcement in each year since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: UK expenditure on fisheries enforcement including monitoring control and surveillance on land, at sea, aerial surveillance and satellite monitoring is set out in the following table:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 1997 (1)— 
			 1998 24.0 
			 1999 24.8 
			 2000 24.8 
			 2001 25.7 
			 2002 23.9 
			 2003 24.6 
			 2004 25.4 
			 2005 26.8 
			 2006 26.6 
			 (1) Files not available to confirm figures.

Fisheries

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament: A Policy to reduce unwanted by-catches and eliminate discards in European fisheries (COM(2007) 136 final) dated 28 March 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government welcome what they consider to be a forward-thinking and radical paper, focusing on the single issue that does most to discredit the Common Fisheries Policy in the eyes of the public.
	It is particularly welcome that the Commission has focussed on the economic incentives on fishermen that give rise to discarding—it is only if we focus on these that we will find solutions that work.
	But much greater thought is needed on practical implementation, particularly in relation to the concept of a discard ban. The Communication underplays significantly the enforcement problems and associated costs that a complete ban would bring, especially in the mixed fisheries found in waters all around the UK. The UK looks forward to participating actively in that additional work. We must also involve stakeholders to ensure the measures are effective in practice.

Fuels: Carbon Emissions

Andrew Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information his Department holds on the relative carbon emission profiles of  (a) kerosene,  (b) wood,  (c) coal,  (d) electricity,  (e) natural gas and  (f) liquefied petroleum gas when used as domestic fuels.

Ian Pearson: The following table shows CO2 emissions per unit of energy consumed, and total emissions, from fuels in the domestic sector.
	The second column refers to emissions per unit energy consumed, in kilograms of carbon dioxide per gigajoule (GJ), and the third column contains total UK emissions from the use of the corresponding fuel in the domestic sector, in million tonnes of carbon dioxide. The data include emissions associated with the fuel production, for example at power stations, refineries, and in the transportation of wood fuel.
	The data in the table refer to the geographical coverage of the United Kingdom.
	
		
			  CO 2  emissions from the domestic sector in 2005 
			  Fuel  Emissions per unit of energy consumed (kgCO 2 /GJ) including emissions associated with production  Total emissions including emissions associated with production (MtCO 2 ) 
			 Burning oil(1) 75.40 8.16 
			 Wood(2) 6.94 0.06 
			 Coal 82.59 0.76 
			 Anthracite 89.18 0.953 
			 Electricity 146.27 61.30 
			 Natural gas 52.26 71.84 
			 LPG 66.72 0.98 
			 (1) The UK GHG inventory reports the use of domestic kerosene under burning oil, following the classification used by the DTI. (2) Wood figures include the effect of absorption of CO2 during the lifetime of the tree.

Genetically Modified Organisms

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what arrangements are in place to ensure that contamination of non-genetically modified (GM) potato crops  (a) via GM volunteers and  (b) otherwise (i) is minimised and (ii) is detected if it occurs.

Ian Pearson: holding answer 14 June 2007
	It is assumed that this question relates to the statutory consents granted to BASF to conduct trials of GM disease-resistant potatoes. The consents specify a number of detailed conditions to ensure that a GM presence does not arise in conventional potato crops. These include appropriate requirements on managing volunteers, crop separation, monitoring and reporting. Compliance with the consent conditions will be checked by the DEFRA GM Inspectorate.

Landfill: Fees and Charges

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate his Department and its agencies have made of changes in the cost of waste collection and disposal to local authorities of  (a) increased landfill tax since 1997 and  (b) the Landfill Allowances Trading Scheme.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government take account of the impacts of landfill tax and the Landfill Allowances Trading Scheme (LATS) when allocating local government funding. In the 2004 Spending Review (which takes us through to 2007-08), revenues from the landfill tax escalator were recycled back to local councils via Revenue Support Grant. Decisions on future funding will be taken in the context of this year's Comprehensive Spending Review.
	It is not possible to simply attribute a proportion of the actual costs of waste collection and disposal to landfill tax or LATS. These economic instruments influence local government behaviour, and were they not in place, local authorities would pursue different waste management choices with different cost implications.
	The net current expenditure on waste collection and disposal by local authorities in each year for which figures are available since 1997 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Net current expenditure on waste collection and disposal 
			   Amount (£000) 
			 1998-99 1,281,919 
			 1999-2000 1,423,278 
			 2000-01 1,521,338 
			 2001-02 1,653,856 
			 2002-03 1,806,684 
			 2003-04 2,004,139 
			 2004-05 2,190,937 
			 2005-06 2,442,267 
			  S ource: Local Authority Revenue Outturn Returns

Odour Pollution

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many orders have been served by local authorities to tackle problems of odour in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many orders have been served by the Environment Agency to tackle problems of odour in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Environment Agency (EA) is responsible for regulating and inspecting sites that fall under a number of environmental regulatory systems, including the waste management licensing system and the pollution prevention and control regime. The EA's national enforcement database records details of EA enforcement action, however, these records do not differentiate between different types of offences. The information requested is therefore not available due to the disproportionate cost involved.
	Local authorities also have powers to issue notices in relation to odour problems under the pollution prevention and control regime. However, data collected are similarly restricted to the total number of notices issued by local authorities relating to any regulatory matter on emissions from designated Part A2 and B installations. A breakdown of notices served by local authorities solely for odour offences is therefore also not available.
	DEFRA currently does not collate statistics on the number of statutory nuisance abatement notices served by local authorities to tackle odours, under section 79 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Local authorities do not have a duty to collect this data.

Private Sewers

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to publish the consultation paper on how private sewers and drains will be transferred to the sewerage undertakers; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: A public consultation will take place over the summer on the implementation options for the transfer of private sewers to water and sewerage companies. This will also consider questions of the scope of transfer and the prevention of new private sewers.

Radioactive Wastes: Waste Management

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government intends to take to ensure the independence of the successor body to the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management.

Ian Pearson: The reconstituted Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) will be appointed as an advisory non-departmental public body, according to the Code of Practice of the Commissioner of Public Appointments, as was the original CoRWM Committee. It will therefore be independent of Government or any other interest.

Radioactive Wastes: Waste Management

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what meetings he has held with the  (a) Environment Agency,  (b) the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate and  (c) Office of Civil Nuclear Security on the new arrangements for the setting of packaging standards for radioactive waste; and if he will place in the Library copies of the minutes of such meetings.

Ian Pearson: No such meetings were held by the Secretary of State. However, as stated in his announcement of 25 October, the independent environment and nuclear safety regulators believe that this proposal to nominate the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) as the geological disposal facility implementing body provides a framework that they can regulate in a strong and effective manner. They are content that the NDA will be responsible for implementing the geological disposal programme, within the constitutional arrangements described. The regulators' support is of major importance, as strong independent regulation is key both to ensuring the safety of people and the environment and to securing confidence and trust in the delivery arrangements.

Recycling: Odour Pollution

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what level of odours from green waste recycling centres his Department classifies as acceptable; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The European waste framework directive (2006/12/EC) requires member states to ensure that waste is recovered or disposed of without endangering human health and without using process or methods which could harm the environment. This includes without causing a nuisance through odours.
	The level of odour emission acceptable from green waste recycling centres depends on a number of factors, including the nature of the activity and the regulatory regime within which it operates and the proximity of those that may be affected. Where the activity is subject to a waste management licence, the prevention of odour may be imposed by way of conditions to that licence. This requirement may be monitored qualitatively or quantitatively by the operator and assessed by regulators on a case-by-case basis.
	In addition, section 79 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 places a duty on local authorities to inspect their areas periodically to detect any statutory nuisances that may exist or are likely to occur or recur. There is also a duty to take reasonably practicable steps to investigate complaints of statutory nuisance. Odour may be considered as a statutory nuisance if it is considered to be
	"any dust, steam, smell or other effluvia arising on industrial, trade or business premises and being prejudicial to health or a nuisance".
	Operations regulated through the waste management licensing system may still be subject to action against statutory nuisance.

Recycling: Odour Pollution

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations have been received by  (a) his Department and  (b) the Environment Agency on concerns about odour from the Green Waste Recycling Centre in Haynes West End, Bedfordshire; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: I am not aware of any representations received by my Department on odour problems from this site. However, I understand that the Environment Agency (EA) has received in excess of 250 odour complaints about the site since December 2005.
	The site operates under a waste management licence and is regularly inspected for compliance with the licence conditions by the EA. Sites operating under a waste management licence have an overarching requirement to recover or dispose of waste without causing harm to human health or pollution of the environment. This includes without causing a nuisance through noise or odour.
	The EA have assessed all reported complaints, often in collaboration with the local authority environmental health officer, but only a few have been substantiated as being caused by failures on site. Where this is the case, action has been taken to bring about improvements to the company's working procedures.

Recycling: Paper

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many pages in his Department's publication Waste Strategy for England 2007 are printed on uncoated paper.

Ben Bradshaw: The Waste Strategy 2007 document does not contain any pages printed on uncoated paper. All copies of the Waste Strategy 2007 produced by The Stationery Office were printed on 'Evolution Satin' paper. This is a coated paper and contains 75 per cent. recycled paper and 25 per cent. ECF Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) pulp, which is Forestry Stewardship Council certified.
	We are obliged to purchase and use paper specified within the Department for Transport's Recycled Printing Papers Framework (PPAD 09/034/023). In the case of the Waste Strategy document, a coated paper was used due to the colour content.
	Although some printed copies of the Strategy have been distributed, we would encourage people to view the Strategy online, where possible, in order to avoid wastage.

Territorial Waters: Contamination

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures he has taken to reduce discards in UK territorial waters in each year since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government have for a number of years been actively encouraging the widespread application of more selective gears by the UK fleet, developed with the assistance of departmental funding. In this period, we have also worked with the European Commission (and other member states) to introduce a range of enhanced technical measures at Community level, designed to make EU fisheries more sustainable for the longer-term. These have included increases in mesh size, the adoption of sorting grids and the application of square mesh panels in particular fisheries.

Waste Disposal: Business

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance has been produced by his Department and its agencies for local authorities on penalties for businesses who dispose of rubbish in municipal public litter bins.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government have not issued specific guidance on this matter. The Government's role is to establish the legislative framework and to issue explanatory guidance on the legislation when it is initially introduced. It is for the relevant enforcement authorities to interpret the legislation, based on their own legal advice, and to apply it appropriately in each individual case.
	The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 made certain amendments to the offences in the Environmental Protection Act 1990 which cover illegal waste disposal. This includes: section 33, which is the main fly-tipping offence; section 34, which sets out the waste duty of care; and section 47 on receptacles for commercial waste. Businesses that dispose of rubbish in municipal public litter bins may be committing one of these offences, but this would depend on the individual circumstances of any given case.
	DEFRA published general guidance on the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act in April 2005, which has been distributed to all local authorities in England and Wales.

Waste Management

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what incentives his Department has given local authorities to reduce their waste arisings; and what penalties they will face if they fail to do so;
	(2)  what measures his Department  (a) has introduced and  (b) plans to introduce to reduce waste arisings.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 14 June 2007
	Action to reduce the amount of waste produced in the first instance is driven by regional and local strategies and supported by nationally funded programmes.
	The amount of waste collected from households per head is measured under local authority (LA) best value performance indicator (BVPI) 84a. BVPIs have statutory performance targets and are monitored by the Audit Commission. As a standardised suite of performance indicators, BVPIs help central Government and the public to monitor, analyse and compare the achievements of LAs.
	In addition, the Government are providing funding and support to LAs to help them promote and develop more sustainable waste management practices such as recycling, reuse and waste minimisation.
	The Waste Minimisation Programme, run by the DEFRA-funded Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), is working to stem the growth of household waste. This is part of a package of measures to enable the UK to meet the requirements of the Landfill Directive and move towards sustainable waste management.
	As part of its Waste Minimisation Programme, WRAP is working with 13 major retailers to reduce the amount of waste from supermarkets. This includes looking at ways to redesign packaging, as well as providing support for research and development into waste minimisation. It is also working with LAs to establish greater participation in recycling and home composting. This is achieved by WRAP through a variety of means, for example through LA advice and training; food waste collection trials with selected authorities; funding support for campaigns to boost recycling participation in local areas; and a targeted National Home Composting Programme.
	LAs have also received £45 million in 2005-06, £105 million in 2006-07 and £110 million in 2007-08 under the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant to help them develop new and more efficient ways to deliver waste reduction and increase recycling.
	The recently published Waste Strategy 2007 puts forward a range of measures to further reduce waste arisings and build on recent improvements in recycling. A greater focus on waste prevention has been recognised through a new target to reduce the amount of household waste not reused, recycled or composted, from over 22.2 million tonnes in 2000 by 29 per cent. to 15.8 million tonnes in 2010, with an aspiration to reduce it to 12.2 million tonnes in 2020—a reduction of 45 per cent. This is equivalent to a fall of 50 per cent. per person (from 450 kilograms per person in 2000 to 225 kilograms in 2020). The strategy also sets higher national targets for household waste recycling and composting to reach at least 40 per cent. by 2010, 45 per cent. by 2015 and 50 per cent. by 2020.
	There are no specific penalties to encourage LAs to reduce their collected waste volumes. The Landfill Allowances Trading Scheme (LATS) places limits on the amount of biodegradable municipal waste that authorities can landfill. LAs that exceed limits are liable to a penalty of £150 per tonne. Minimising municipal waste arisings helps LAs meet their LATS obligations and so avoid incurring penalties.

Waste Management: Bedfordshire

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what measures have been put in place to ensure that green waste in Bedfordshire is  (a) processed and  (b) recycled to required standards; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what measures the Government are putting in place to ensure material deposited at green waste recycling centres is recycled to acceptable standards; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what measures the Government have put in place to ensure green waste recycling centres meet the terms of their licences; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government strongly supports the composting of organic waste. This is an important component of meeting targets for recycling and composting, as well as those under the landfill directive to reduce the landfilling of biodegradable municipal waste.
	Composting of green waste is classified as a waste recovery operation under the waste framework directive and is carried out under a waste management license issued by the Environment Agency (EA) or a registered exemption from the need for a license. The EA is the competent authority responsible for carrying out regular inspections on such sites, including those in Bedfordshire, to assess compliance with the license conditions.
	Sites operating under a waste management licence must recover or dispose of waste without causing harm to human health or pollution of the environment. This includes causing a nuisance through noise or odour.
	The EU Animal By-Products Regulation also applies to the composting of some materials. The regulation permits low-risk animal by-products ('Category 3' material) to be composted or treated in an approved composting or biogas plant and treated to an EU standard. Alternative treatment standards are due to be introduced later this year. However, these must demonstrate the capability to meet a specified level of pathogen reduction.
	In addition, the DEFRA funded Business Resource Efficiency and Waste programme (BREW), the Waste and Resources Action programme (WRAP) and the EA have developed a quality protocol for compost in consultation with industry and other interested parties. The protocol sets criteria for, and allows, the full recovery, production and use of quality compost from waste organic materials without the need for further regulation beyond the point of production.

Water Abstraction

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many permanent abstraction licences have been amended to make them time-limited since the Water Act 2003 was introduced; and how many of those amendments were taken voluntarily.

Ian Pearson: Six abstraction licences have had time limited status since regulations were introduced in April 2006. These covered apportionment (splitting) of permanent abstraction licences that 'change hands'.
	Nine permanent abstraction licences have been voluntarily converted to time limited status since the Water Act 2003.
	The Environment Agency has converted 24 of its own abstraction licences to time limited status.

Water: Contamination

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he has any targets to reduce discards in UK waters.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government are extremely concerned about the level of discarding generally and is clear that significant steps must be taken to reduce it.
	However, this is a problem which requires EU-wide action and we will therefore be working with the Commission (and other member states) to ensure their latest initiative is fully effective in delivering appropriate solutions throughout the community.

Water: Fees and Charges

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research his Department or its agencies are conducting into  (a) water rates and  (b) unmetered water charging.

Ian Pearson: The Government commissioned and published research into alternative methods of water charging, both measured and unmeasured, in their review of water charging in 1998-99. We are currently updating this research, looking at the distributional impacts of a range of measured and unmeasured tariffs, and will report later this year.

Water: Infrastructure

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the co-operation and information sharing by the Regional Planning Bodies with statutory bodies to determine the extent and location of new water infrastructure required in England.

Yvette Cooper: I have been asked to reply.
	In developing their regional spatial strategies, the regional planning bodies are required to consult with water undertakers in helping to develop the broad development strategy for the next 20 years, including the provision of infrastructure and management policies governing future distribution of regionally or sub-regionally significant activities and development within the region.
	The draft RSS is then publicly consulted on and independently examined in public. This process allows issues to be highlighted for further scrutiny and any underlying evidence to be tested for robustness—including any matters relating to water infrastructure and provision.

Water: South East Region

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what studies his Department has undertaken on the capacity of water resources to meet plans for increased housing numbers, with particular reference to the south-east of England.

Ian Pearson: DEFRA worked very closely with the Department of Communities and Local Government (CLG) throughout 2005, to analyse the environmental impacts of the increased levels of housing supply proposed in Kate Barker's review of housing supply. This work led to the publication of the Entec Report: "A sustainability impact study of additional housing scenarios in England", in December 2005. The comprehensive package of environmental measures announced as part of the Government's response to the Barker review was informed by this analysis. Close inter-departmental liaison is ongoing.
	My Department has been involved in the appraisal of the New Growth Point Proposals, to ensure that the environmental implications of these proposals for increased levels of growth in the wider south, have been considered from the start. We have worked closely with Natural England and the Environment Agency to scrutinise the proposals to determine whether the levels and locations of growth present any problems with respect to water resources, and also flood management, water quality, green infrastructure and biodiversity/designated sites.
	DEFRA has co-funded a study with CLG and the Environment Agency to investigate how total water demand in the Thames Gateway can be managed to ensure that development does not place additional demand on existing water resources. We are calling the concept 'water neutrality'. We are currently considering in further detail exactly what this might mean for the Gateway, and will report on the study findings in due course.
	On 1 April 2007, the preparation of water companies' 25 year water resource management plans became a statutory requirement under the Water Act 2003, and will be subject to public consultation. These plans, which had hitherto been prepared voluntarily, set out the demand and supply measures water companies plan to take to maintain security of supply for their customers. Local authorities are statutory consultees for these plans and will be able to comment on the measures water companies are taking in respect of new housing developments.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Departments: Sovereign Strategy

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many meetings  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials from her Department held with Sovereign Strategy in each year between 1997 and 2006.

Margaret Beckett: Obtaining the information requested for the time period the right hon. Member has specified would incur disproportionate cost. However, my right hon. Friend the Minister for Europe has met Alan Donnelly, Executive Chairman of Sovereign Strategy, on a number of occasions as they have been personal friends for a number of years. Mr. Donnelly is well known to many Ministers and is likely also to have met others on a number of occasions over this period.

Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the likely effect of the security walls being constructed in Baghdad on the security situation in Baghdad; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: The security walls are being constructed by the Multinational Force (Iraq), under US command. We understand that they are a temporary measure to create secure neighbourhoods as part of a much wider range of measures being taken as part of the Iraqi-led Baghdad security plan. This plan, and the increase in US troop numbers in and around Baghdad, are designed to improve the security situation in Iraq.
	It is too early to judge the success of the plan, not least because not all the additional US military units are in place. However, early indications show some signs for encouragement. Whilst the incidence of high profile suicide attacks remains of deep concern, other forms of sectarian violence are below pre-plan levels and the Iraqi security forces have so far performed well. Ultimately, efforts to improve security in Baghdad are designed to create the conditions in which Iraqis themselves can make progress on reconciliation and power-sharing, and we continue to provide encouragement and practical support to this process.

Malaysia: Military Decorations

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance is being offered to the Malaysian High Commission to speed up the rate of issuance of the Pingat Jasa Malaysia medal for veterans.

Margaret Beckett: The Pingat Jasa Malaysia (PJM) is a commemorative medal issued by the Malaysian Government for service between August 1957 and August 1966. The issue of this medal to veterans is a matter for the Malaysians. The Ministry of Defence has agreed to endorse applications for the PJM from veterans and to pass them on to the Malaysian High Commission. Veterans who wish to check the progress of their applications should write to the Malaysian High Commission.

Middle East: Global Conflict Prevention Pool

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the annual budget of the Middle East and North Africa strategy of the UK Global Conflict Prevention Pool is, broken down by expenditure on each country involved.

Margaret Beckett: The budget for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP) for financial year (FY) 2007-08 is £3 million. The following table details expenditure on each country in the proposed allocations for MENA GCPP.
	
		
			  Financial year 2007-08 
			   Amount (£) 
			 Budget 3 million 
			   
			 Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories 1,400,000 
			 Lebanon 1,085,000 
			 Libya 265,000 
			 Jordan 50,000 
			 Yemen 200,000 
			 Total allocation 3,000,000

Middle East: Global Conflict Prevention Pool

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the role of the Government's Global Conflict Prevention Pool is in relation to the Middle East Peace Process; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP) mechanisms and resources are used to support UK policy towards the Middle East Peace Process. GCPP funds projects in the region that aim to address drivers of conflict in order to enhance the prospect of a sustainable two-state solution. Examples include:
	a project which has helped move the route of the separation barrier closer to the green line;
	a project which aims to raise awareness of planning problems in Palestinian villages in Israeli controlled areas of the West Bank and take action to tackle this problem;
	a project identifying systematic failures in due process in the Israeli military courts and attempting to correct them through legal and public advocacy;
	work to facilitate freedom of movement for Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories through legal and administrative action and promoting access to the Israeli judicial system; and
	providing assistance to close protection for Palestinian President Abbas.

Project Al Yamamah

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations her Department has received from the United States Government on the Government's decision to suspend the Serious Fraud Office inquiry into the Al-Yamamah deal; when those representations were received; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: US officials participated fully in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Working Group on Bribery discussions on 16-18 January and 12-14 March. On 19 January the Economic Counsellor from the US embassy met with Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials and registered American concerns about the Serious Fraud Office's decision. In the meeting it was made clear that the decision to discontinue the investigation was taken by the Serious Fraud Office Director alone on considerations of national and international security.

Somalia: Peace Keeping Operations

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment she has made of  (a) the numbers of African Union troops deployed in Somalia and  (b) the impact of that deployment on the security situation in the country.

Margaret Beckett: The African Union (AU) mission to Somalia (AMISOM) currently has about 1,700 Ugandan troops deployed to Somalia. The UK is working closely with international partners to seek to increase the number of AMISOM troops from other AU countries.
	AMISOM was authorised by UN Security Council Resolution 1744, which was sponsored by the UK and adopted unanimously on 20 February. The troops currently deployed are playing an important part in ensuring stability in the parts of Mogadishu and Baidoa in which they are operating. We judge that AMISOM has a crucial role to play in creating the security conditions that would enable a fuller withdrawal of Ethiopian troops from Somalia.

Somalia: Peace Keeping Operations

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support is being provided by  (a) the UK and  (b) the EU to the African Union AMISOM force in Somalia; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The Government believe it is vital that a successful African Union (AU) Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) deployment ensures lasting stability in Somalia. The UK has offered planning, and logistical, support for a Somalia planning cell within the AU's Peace and Security Operations Division in Addis Ababa. The UK has also offered planning, logistical and financial assistance direct to troop contributing countries, including £1.3million to Uganda.
	We strongly support the early disbursement of the EU's pledge of €15 million to AMISOM.

Somalia: Peace Keeping Operations

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what requests have been received by the UK from the African Union (AU) for NATO air transport support for AU troops in Somalia; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: The UK has not been approached directly by the African Union (AU) in connection with requests for NATO air transport support for AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) troops in Somalia. We understand that the AU has made a request to NATO in connection with air transport support. The UK will wish to support NATO on this issue where we can.
	The UK strongly supports AMISOM and is already offering planning assistance to several potential troop-contributing countries and logistical support for the AU military cell in Addis Ababa.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the role of the Africa Conflict Prevention Pool is in relation to the conflict in Darfur; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: The Africa Conflict Prevention Pool (ACPP) has provided vital funding to underpin UK efforts to address the problems of Darfur.
	The UK is a leading supporter of the African Union (AU) Mission in Sudan (AMIS) and we have committed over £10 million of bilateral assistance through the ACPP. This funding has been used to pay for vehicles and rapid deployment kits for AMIS personnel. The ACPP has also provided funding for UK military training teams based in Africa to support pre-deployment training for approximately 4,000 AMIS peacekeepers drawn from Nigeria, Rwanda, Ghana and Gambia. A further £62 million of bilateral support for AMIS has been committed through the peacekeeping budget.
	In addition, over £600,000 of ACPP funds were used to provide budgetary support for the AU's efforts to broker a political settlement through the Inter-Sudanese Peace Talks on Darfur in Abuja, which led to the signing of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA). The ACPP has subsequently funded work to help the AU explain the benefits of the DPA to the people of Darfur, and for an expert to support the AU in preparing the Darfur-Darfur Dialogue and Consultation. We stand ready to support a secretariat to the AU and UN mediators who have prepared a roadmap for taking forward the political process.

Sudan: Violence

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the trend of attacks on civilians in the eastern part of Southern Kordofan, Sudan, since January 2007; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: We are concerned about the deterioration in security over recent months in South Kordofan. This appears to be caused by the lack of progress in implementing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in the region, exacerbated by local problems over land use and migratory routes. We are also concerned about previous incidents of violence in Kordofan by Darfur rebels and the further risk that the conflict in Darfur could spill over into Kordofan.
	As Southern Kordofan is one of the "Three Areas" under the CPA, we are monitoring the situation there through the Assessment and Evaluation Committee that oversees the implementation of the CPA. We have also made it clear to the Darfur rebels that it is unacceptable to spread this conflict into Kordofan.

Syria: UN Resolutions

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of Syrian compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: In March, the UN Secretary-General reported that there was mounting evidence that Hezbollah was rearming and smuggling arms across the Syria/Lebanon border in breach of UN Security Council resolution (UNSCR) 1701. I will arrange for a copy of his report to be placed in the Library of the House, it as also available on the UN website at http://www.un.org/Docs/sc/sgrep07.htm While the UN Secretary-General's report did not specifically identify the supplier of these arms, we continue to judge that Syria is involved in providing Hezbollah with weapons as well as facilitating the transfer of weapons from Iran in breach of UNSCR 1701. This is a serious concern.
	The UK continues to work to ensure the full implementation of UNSCR 1701. We are working to improve Lebanese border-monitoring capability through a bilateral programme of assistance, support to a German-led initiative and work through the UN.

Zimbabwe: Human Rights

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 19 March 2007,  Official Report, column 600W, on Zimbabwe: human rights, what steps have been taken by the EU to engage with southern African Governments on the situation in Zimbabwe; and what the outcome has been of these steps.

Margaret Beckett: The situation in Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate with economic, political and social indicators worsening by the week. On behalf of the EU the presidency, through its Ambassadors or local representatives, has engaged directly with governments in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region to express the EU's concern at human rights abuses within Zimbabwe, which many African Governments share. The EU troika held a formal dialogue with South Africa on 14 May at which Ministers discussed Zimbabwe. Both sides agreed that meaningful internal dialogue in Zimbabwe is crucial to the resolution of the crisis. The EU troika met with the African Union (AU) delegation at ministerial level on 15 May. The AU noted its continuing support for the SADC initiative and President Mbeki's role. The EU awaits the outcome of this initiative with interest and will return to the situation in Zimbabwe at the UN Human Rights Council in September, following the EU statement in March condemning state-sponsored violence. The UK will continue to ensure that opportunities available at EU level are taken to raise the deteriorating situation in Zimbabwe and to highlight the EU's condemnation of ongoing political violence and human rights abuses.

Zimbabwe: Travel Restrictions

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the UK Government are taking to press the EU to extend its 2002 sanctions to the family members and business associates of those members of the Zimbabwean government already subject to EU sanctions.

Ian McCartney: The EU visa ban list already includes a number of Robert Mugabe's family members, who hold positions in the Zimbabwean Government. We do not intend at present to press for the inclusion of all family members of those principals on the EU visa ban list. Where we receive sufficient and accurate information concerning the presence of those children and family members in the UK, we actively investigate the sources of financing for their study and presence to see whether it breaches the terms of the asset freeze under the EU's targeted measures. We will do the same with known business associates.

HEALTH

Audiology Services

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2006,  Official Report, column 789W, on audiology services, what steps she plans to take to ensure that the planned additional audiology patient pathways are provided.

Ivan Lewis: Strategic health authorities (SHAs) have provided assurance that their activity plans for 2007-08 will deliver the 18-week milestones including six-week maximum waits for all diagnostic tests by March 2008. SHAs have generally taken the view that they can achieve the necessary reductions in audiology waiting times with a modest procurement of additional independent sector capacity.
	The SHAs are confident that the remaining capacity can be found through a combination of more efficient use of existing capacity, extra investment in NHS-provided services and the roll out of the one-stop assessment and fit service model, all of which should have a substantial impact, as set out in ,Improving Access to Audiology'. Services in England, copies of which are available in the Library.
	The additional independent sector capacity will be provided through extensions to the existing diagnostics phase 2 procurement and local procurement.

Blood: Safety

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if she will release all remaining documents from those which were rediscovered by her Department referred to in the Review of Documentation relating to the Safety of Blood Products 1970 to 1985 before the end of the inquiry chaired by Lord Archer into contaminated blood and blood products; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  how many of the documents rediscovered by her Department referred to in the Review of Documentation relating to the Safety of Blood Products 1970 to 1985 relate to the period after 1985; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: The review identifies that 20.5 per cent. of papers have been categorised as relating to self sufficiency. The focus of the review was 1970-85, and 90 per cent. of the documents related to this time period, just under 10 per cent. fell outside this timeline.
	Lord Archer has been advised that the Department will release all papers identified in the review, in line with the Freedom of Information Act. The papers will be released to Lord Archer's inquiry as quickly as possible, in batches on a monthly basis.

Cancer: Medical Treatments

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the merits of the provision of photodynamic therapy for cancer on the NHS; and what estimate she has made of the cost implications of the provision of such treatment.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 12 June 2007
	 As part of its programme of work on interventional procedures, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has issued guidance on the use of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in the treatment of several cancers.
	NICE has stated that PDT for the treatment of Barrett's oesophagus, advanced bronchial carcinoma, endobronchial carcinoma, bile duct cancer and skin tumours is safe and works well enough for use in the national health service, provided normal arrangements are in place for consent, audit and clinical governance.
	NICE has also issued guidance on the use of PDT for early stage oesophageal cancer, stating that current evidence on PDT for the treatment of this disease is not adequate to support its use without special arrangements for consent, audit and clinical governance.
	The Department has not made any estimate of the cost implications of the provision of PDT for the treatment of cancer.
	It will be for the NHS at a local level to decide whether to offer this treatment to patients.

Care Homes

Michael Jabez Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many applications for continuing care assessments were made in  (a) 2004,  (b) 2005 and  (c) 2006; and what proportion were (i) agreed and (ii) declined in each health authority in England.

Ivan Lewis: The information is not available in the format requested. The available information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Strategic health authority  Number of people receiving continuing care  Number of people newly meeting eligibility criteria for continuing care 
			   2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 England (grossed up) 19,984 20,842 25,008 14,573 15,976 20,353 
			 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire 435 411 559 367 312 313 
			 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 830 604 428 804 347 541 
			 Essex 698 465 423 641 319 425 
			 North West London 1,468 1,998 2,030 857 1,423 1,234 
			 North Central London 320 355 768 360 293 511 
			 North East London 733 809 889 536 406 575 
			 South East London 580 651 599 778 756 927 
			 South West London 433 523 655 522 664 730 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear 1,081 916 695 577 456 999 
			 County Durham and Tees Valley 1,374 1,197 1,224 1,069 965 978 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire 705 442 583 555 386 782 
			 West Yorkshire 688 618 1,129 816 1,163 1,692 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 376 252 382 141 162 343 
			 Greater Manchester 984 936 689 786 729 429 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside 1,074 1,153 965 367 662 970 
			 Thames Valley 632 920 1,176 284 598 464 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 530 1,141 1,929 318 460 945 
			 Kent and Medway 770 883 723 452 501 427 
			 Surrey and Sussex 719 961 2,142 552 680 525 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 741 653 1,134 316 763 901 
			 South West Peninsula 516 406 552 539 770 928 
			 Dorset and Somerset 241 428 237 122 223 267 
			 South Yorkshire 192 103 351 135 89 415 
			 Trent 928 1,147 1,609 848 903 1,617 
			 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland 215 602 655 497 697 917 
			 Shropshire and Staffordshire 663 453 539 400 415 261 
			 Birmingham and the Black Country 1,107 1,119 1,350 549 387 602 
			 West Midlands South 690 696 593 166 447 635 
			  Note: In 2003-04, not all primary care trusts (PCTs) submitted data, the England figure quoted above includes estimates for those PCTs which did not submit data.

Care Homes: Greater London

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people lived in a care home for elderly people in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not collected centrally. The Information Centre for health and social care collects data on the number of care home residents whose care is funded, wholly or in part, by local councils, but not on the number of those funding their own care.
	The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), as part of its regulation work, collects and publishes data on the numbers of registered care and nursing homes and places in England, but not on occupancy levels or numbers of residents. This information is available at:
	www.csci.org.uk/professional/ask_csci/statistics_and_data_about_care/facts_and_figures/headline_statistic_spreadsheet.aspx.

CJD

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps have been taken to inform those who received blood known to be at risk of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) contamination that they could be at risk of contracting vCJD; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: The Creutzfeld-Jakob Disease (CJD) incidents panel advises on the assessment and management of risk to patients who may potentially have been exposed to CJD following medical interventions. In December 2003, following the first suspected case of variant Creutzfeld-Jakob Diseases (vCJD) transmission through whole blood transfusion, the first patient notification exercise was undertaken to notify recipients of blood components donated by people who later developed vCJD. There are currently around 24 people in this group who are still alive.
	Since then, three other notification exercises have been implemented in respect of recipients of certain plasma products. There are approximately 5,000 people in this group, which includes patients with haemophilia A and B and Von Willebrand's Disease to whom it was indicated that they had received United Kingdom sourced plasma derived vCJD implicated products during the period 1980-2001, and would therefore be considered at risk of vCJD for public health purposes. Additionally notification has been given to about 100 blood donors to patients who later developed vCJD.
	All the information documents used for these notification exercises are available on the Health Protection Agency website at:
	www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/cjd/information_documents.htm.

Conal Timoney

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role Conal Timoney had in her Department at the time of the publication of the contract notice  (a) 2006/S 114-121806 and  (b) 2006/S 135-145353; whether he performed that role as a civil servant or consultant; and what role he currently has.

Andy Burnham: At the time of the publication of the contract notices 2006/S 114-121806 and 2006/S 135-145353 Conal Timoney's role within the Department's Commercial Directorate was Director of Communications. This role was performed on a contractual basis. Conal Timoney is currently the Commercial Directorate's Director of Strategy.

Departments: Contracts

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the definition is of  (a) service category No. 25 at section II.2 of the contract notice 2006/S 114-121806 and  (b) service category No. 27 at section II.2 of the contract notice 2006/S 135-145353.

Andy Burnham: Service categories are listed within Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council. Service Category No. 25 is defined as health and social services. Service Category No. 27 is defined as other services.

Departments: E-mail

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which  (a) divisions and  (b) individuals have access to e-mails coming to the csf@dh.gsi.gov.uk account.

Andy Burnham: The csf@dh.gsi.gov.uk mail-box is managed by the Framework for procuring External Support for Commissioners project team within the Commercial Directorate of the Department.

Departments: Press

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which subject areas were covered by each of her Department's press officers  (a) in May 2005 and  (b) in the most recent period for which the information is available.

Ivan Lewis: The most recent list of the subject areas covered by the Department's press office has not changed since May 2005. Information on how these subjects were broken down between individual press officers in May 2005 is not available. The available information has been placed in the Library.

Departments: Public Expenditure

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date she last met the Chancellor of the Exchequer to discuss the forward budget for her Department.

Andy Burnham: The Secretary of State and Departmental officials hold regular discussions with their counterparts at HM Treasury on the forward budget for the Department of Health, the national health service and social care as part of preparations for the 2007 comprehensive spending review.

Doctors: Registration

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what safeguards are in place to ensure that doctors employed by the national health service are registered with the General Medical Council; what procedures are followed if a doctor is found to be unregistered; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: Doctors must be registered with the General Medical Council (GMC) to practise medicine in the United Kingdom.
	It is the responsibility of individual employers to carry out pre and post-appointment registration checks on employees. Processes are in place to prevent unsuitable people from gaining employment in the national health service. Employers should undertake a variety of checks before someone is offered an NHS post including verification of identity, confirmation with professional regulatory bodies and criminal records bureau checks on staff who have access to patients in the normal course of their work.

Elderly: Care

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to ensure privacy and dignity in toilet use for the elderly in hospitals and care homes; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: Regulation 12 of the Care Homes Regulations 2001 states that:
	(4) The registered person shall make suitable arrangements to ensure that the care home is conducted-
	(a) in a manner which respects the privacy and dignity of service users;
	Standard 10 of the National Minimum Standards for Care homes for Older People includes the following requirements.
	10.1 The arrangements for health and personal care ensure that service user's privacy and dignity are respected at all times, and with particular regard to:
	personal care-giving, including nursing, bathing, washing, using the toilet or commode;
	consultation with, and examination by, health and social care professionals;
	consultation with legal and financial advisors;
	maintaining social contacts with relatives and friends;
	entering bedrooms, toilets and bathrooms;
	following death.
	The Healthcare Commission assesses the performance of the national health service against the standards set out in "Standards for Better Health", published by the Department in 2004.
	In carrying out its assessments, the Commission looks at the setting in which care is provided to ensure that, among other aspects, patients enjoy as much privacy as possible and are treated with dignity and respect.

Harwich Hospital: Maternity Services

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether there are plans to change provision of maternity services at Harwich hospital; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: This is a local matter. It is for primary care trusts to commission services to meet the needs of the communities that they serve. I am advised that Essex Rivers healthcare national health service trust has announced a temporary change to the maternity unit it runs at the Fryatt hospital in Harwich.
	This means that from 1 June, midwives will be based at the unit from 7.30 am-9 pm, seven-days-a-week, rather than the current round-the-clock basis.
	Outside of those times, women will still be able to deliver at the unit by contacting the on-call midwife. This is a common maternity service model used by the trust at its other sites such as Halstead hospital.

Hay Fever

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what action her Department is taking to reduce levels of hay fever;
	(2)  what action her Department is taking  (a) to mitigate the risks of high pollen levels and  (b) to reduce the projected number of hay fever cases in the summer months;
	(3)  what assessment she has made of the potential links between global warming, environmental change and the levels of hay fever in the United Kingdom; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: We are taking no specific action to reduce the levels of hay fever, or mitigate the risks of high pollen levels. However, NHS Direct, NHS Direct on line and NHS Direct interactive have been established to provide advice and information on health and self-care. Through these services, people suffering from hay fever have access to information to help them manage their condition and minimise their exposure to pollen. Over the counter and prescription medicines are also available to alleviate the associated symptoms of this condition.
	We have not assessed the potential links between global warming, environmental change and levels of hay fever in the United Kingdom.

Health Insurance

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were covered by private health insurance in each year since 1997.

Andy Burnham: We do not routinely collect these data centrally. However, Laing and Buisson Healthcare Market Review (2006-07), the industry standard, has recently published the following United Kingdom figures.
	
		
			  Private medical insurance 
			   Persons covered, 31 December (T housand) 
			 1997 6,679 
			 1998 6,824 
			 1999 6,536 
			 2000 6,867 
			 2001 6,663 
			 2002 6,711 
			 2003 6,615 
			 2004 6,553 
			 2005 6,536 
			  Source: Data are from Laing and Buisson survey aggregates for all insurers.

Health Services: Urgent Care

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she will publish her urgent care strategy.

Andy Burnham: Officials are continuing to develop the strategy, which is being informed by responses to the "Direction of Travel for Urgent Care: a discussion document" and other work with stakeholders, including service users and carers. A new strategy on urgent and emergency care will be published in due course.

Health Services: Access

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many primary care trusts in England restricted access to health care by instructing health care practitioners not to refer patients for named health care interventions at the end of the 2006-07 financial year; and whether the practice is continuing.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is not held centrally.

Hospitals: Parking

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons hospital staff are not exempt from hospital parking fees; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: Arrangements and charges for car parking on healthcare premises are a matter for individual national health service bodies, taking account of all the relevant local factors. This includes what, if any, concessions or exemptions to offer hospital staff.
	NHS bodies have income generation powers which allow them to raise additional income by marketing any spare capacity resulting from a non-core function, or by exploiting intellectual property rights. Certain rules must be followed, including the fact that profits raised must be used to improve health services. Charging for car parking is a common example of an income generation scheme.

Latex: Allergies

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines her Department issues on the use of latex gloves in the healthcare sector; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The Department does not now issue guidelines on this subject. The NHS National Patient Safety Agency (NHS NPSA) on 26 May 2005 advised all national health service organisations in England and Wales to take better steps to protect patients with latex allergy. Guidance was entitled 'Protecting People With Allergy Associated with Latex' and has been placed in the Library.

Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust: Waiting Lists

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time was in Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust for patients requiring cognitive behavioural therapy in the latest period for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not held centrally.

Marvin Swartz

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent communications her Department has had with Dr. Marvin Swartz of the Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina; and what fees and expenses her Department has  (a) paid and  (b) undertaken to pay to Dr. Swartz.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 11 June 2007
	Dr. Marvin Swartz and a number of British psychiatrists were invited to speak to MPs about the Mental Health Bill on 5 June 2007. The purpose of the event was to give MPs access to useful evidence on the benefits of community treatment orders (CTOs), resulting from discussions at Committee Stage of the Bill about what evidence there was that CTOs work. I chaired the meeting.
	Dr. Swartz was invited to the meeting as an internationally recognised expert on the use of CTOs in mental health, who has pioneered research into their use. Dr. Swartz also expressed an interest in attending the meeting as he felt that his research, which shows the benefits of CTOs, had been misrepresented in the debate over the Mental Health Bill.
	Dr. Swartz was not paid a fee for his contribution to the meeting, but was reimbursed for his rail fare from Manchester, where he was speaking at an academic conference, to London, his overnight hotel accommodation on 4 June, his taxi and rail fare from Central London to Heathrow on 5 June and, because the meeting entailed a change in his planned itinerary in Europe, some of the cost of his air fares.

Maternity Services: Publications

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when NHS Maternity Services, England: 2005-06 will be published.

Ivan Lewis: The latest National Health Service Maternity Statistics, England 2005-06 will be published shortly.

Medical Treatments

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what ability  (a) primary care trusts and  (b) hospital trusts have to deny non-urgent treatment to patients whom they consider to be leading unhealthy lifestyles; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It is for doctors to determine, in consultation with patients and their family, what care is clinically appropriate for each patient, based on an individual assessment of need and of the risks and benefits of all available treatment types. This assessment will take into account lifestyle choices which may affect the efficacy of treatment.

Members: Correspondence

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when her Department expects to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Billericay of 18 May 2007 on the proposed independent sector treatment centre for Basildon.

Ivan Lewis: The letter was answered on 11 June 2007.

Mental Health Services

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS trusts are offering cognitive behavioural therapy privately to patients using NHS facilities.

Rosie Winterton: The information is not centrally available.

Muscular Dystrophy: Drugs

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans her Department has to fast-track new drugs and therapies for Duchenne muscular dystrophy;
	(2)  if she will make the drug PTC-124 available through the NHS to all boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy with single point variations of the gene;
	(3)  what steps her Department has taken to identify boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy with single point variations of the gene.

Ivan Lewis: We have no specific plans to fast-track new drugs or therapies for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
	PTC124 is a drug currently undergoing clinical trials in the United States for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. PTC Therapeutics, the company behind this drug, has not currently organised clinical trials in the United Kingdom.
	We have not taken any specific steps to identify those boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy who would benefit from the drug PTC124; those whose disease is caused by the 'nonsense' mutation.

Muscular Dystrophy: Health Services

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has had with the National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group about commissioning services for muscular dystrophy and neuromuscular conditions.

Ivan Lewis: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has received no advice in the last 12 months from the National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group about muscular dystrophy and neuromuscular conditions.

NHS Appointments Commission

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was of the process of appointing members to the NHS Appointments Commission.

Rosie Winterton: The direct costs of appointing the new chair, non-executive directors and commissioners to the new Appointments Commission amounted to £42,900. This sum includes the cost of advertising, the use of recruitment consultants for the chair post, independent assessors and interview expenses.

NHS: Finance

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many practices received the initial incentive payment (component one) for agreeing a plan for the implementation of the practice based commissioning DES and specific objectives in 2006-07; and how many received the incentive payment (component two).

Andy Burnham: As of 31 March 2007, 6,940 practices (83 per cent.) had received component one of the practice based commissioning directed enhanced service payment.
	The Department does not currently collect data on the number of practices receiving component two of the payment.

NHS: Interpreters

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what expenditure in 2006-07 was for interpreters in the national health system; and what expenditure is forecast for 2007-08.

Rosie Winterton: National health service organisations are not required to report their planned or actual spending on interpretation and translation services to the Department. Therefore, it is not possible to provide either an estimate of spending in 2006-07 or a forecast for 2007-08.
	When planning interpretation and translation services, NHS organisations should take due account of their legal duties, the composition of the communities they serve, and the needs and circumstances of their patients, service users and local populations, and costs.
	The Government have established the independent Commission on Integration and Cohesion to look at Government policies and public services and to report in 2007. As part of its brief, the Commission has looked at the provision of language services across Government. The Department is fully supporting the Commission in its work.

NHS: Procurement

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has had with patient representatives on changes to the portfolio of the National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: The Secretary of State has had no discussions with patient representatives about changes to the portfolio of the National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group (now known as the National Commissioning Group (NCG)) in the last 12 months.
	Due to the very specialised nature of the services in the NCG's portfolio, clinical advisers to the NCG ensure that discussions take place with the patient representative groups specific to individual services. (Examples of the relationships between individual patient representative groups and the NCG are set out in its annual report.)
	"The Review of Commissioning Arrangements for Specialised Services" published in May 2006, recommended the strengthening of patient involvement in the NCG decision-making process. To help achieve this, the Appointments Commission are currently running an open competition to appoint lay members to the group.

NHS: Public Appointments

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health where responsibility lies for  (a) recognising,  (b) commending and  (c) thanking former members of the boards of (i) primary care trusts and (ii) health authorities for their services to the NHS.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 14 June 2007
	It is the responsibility of the Appointments Commission to acknowledge the contribution of chairs and non-executive members. It is good practice for the local employing body to acknowledge the contribution of former executive board members.

Royal London Homeopathic Hospital

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the future of the Royal London Homeopathic hospital.

Andy Burnham: This is a matter for the chair of The University College London Hospitals National Health Service Foundation Trust. We have written to Robert Naylor informing him of the hon. Member's enquiry. He will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Simon Morgan

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role Simon Morgan had in her Department at the time of the publication of the contract notice 2006/S 135-145353; whether he performed that role as a civil servant or consultant; and what role he currently has.

Andy Burnham: At the time of the publication of the notice, Simon Morgan's role within the Department's Commercial Directorate was the project lead for the Framework for procuring External Support for Commissioners (FESC). He is a contractor working within the Department's Commercial Directorate. His current role is the project lead for FESC.

Streptococcus: Pregnant Women

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will introduce enrichment culture method tests of all pregnant women to test for streptococcus B; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The current position is that routine screening of group B streptococcus (GBS) should not be offered to all pregnant women. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's (NICE) guideline on antenatal care states that pregnant women should not be offered routine antenatal screening for GBS because evidence of its clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness remains uncertain.
	A proposal for NICE to appraise the use of an enriched culture medium for the detection of GBS carriage in a subset of pregnant women with clinical risk factors has been submitted on behalf of the UK National Screening Committee's GBS Coordinating Group and is under consideration.

Strokes: Advisory Services

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many acute trusts have a member of staff responsible for ensuring that patients receive adequate information on the services available to them when they are discharged from hospital following a stroke;
	(2)  how many NHS acute trusts have  (a) carried out an audit of the information they provide to people leaving hospital following a stroke and  (b) have a strategy covering the information which should be provided.

Rosie Winterton: holding answers 14 June 2007
	The Department does not collect this data centrally.
	The Royal College of Physicians' National Sentinel Audit measures the quality of all stroke units against various criteria. The 2006 audit shows that 99 per cent. of stroke units display literature on stroke, 59 per cent. have patient versions of the national or local guidelines available and 82 per cent. provide information about social services' local community care arrangements.
	The Department is currently developing a national stroke strategy for England which is considering the need for improved information provision.

Wheelchairs: Children

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what specialist wheelchairs funded by the NHS are available for disabled children; whether equipment maintenance is provided; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: Each primary care trust (PCT) sets its own eligibility criteria, which will take into account individual need and local resources. Based on assessment of need and local eligibility criteria, PCTs decide what specialist wheelchairs should be made available for disabled children. All national health service wheelchair services are funded out of general allocation funding to PCTs. Maintenance of wheelchairs is also determined at local level.
	NHS wheelchairs including specialist wheelchairs for children are supplied and maintained free of charge to disabled people whose need for a wheelchair is permanent. Indoor/outdoor electric chairs can be provided to disabled people who cannot propel a manual chair. Attendant controlled power chairs are also available if needed.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Departments: Public Expenditure

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 27 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1441-2W, on Departments: public expenditure, for which losses his Department was granted Treasury approval in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: All losses incurred by the Home Office during the last five years have been managed by the Department within the scope of authorities delegated by the Treasury, the thresholds for which were set out in the reply provided to the hon. Member on 27 March 2007.
	The overall level of losses incurred by the Home Office in any one year is reported in its resource accounts.

Driving: Mobile Phones

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he had with the Secretary of State for Transport regarding the use of mobile telephones while driving in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: Ministers and officials discuss, as necessary, on roads policing issues, including the use of mobile phones while driving. Such discussions include for example the inclusion in the Road Safety Act 2006 of a provision (section 26), amending the Road Traffic Act 1988 to increase the penalty for offences involving mobile phone use while driving.

Entry Clearances: Fees and Charges

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 16 April 2007 to question 130861, on cost recovery, whether the new charges for visas, residency and naturalisation are in excess of full cost recovery.

Liam Byrne: As I set out to the House in the Third Delegated Legislation Committee on 26 March 2007, in setting fees above normal cost recovery levels we have done so on the basis of the value to the migrant of a successful application (or for work permits, the employer) in reliance of the powers in section 42 of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants etc) Act 2004.
	The fees set at levels above cost recovery are set out in the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Regulations 2007. The fees at or below cost recovery levels are set out in the Immigration and Nationality (Cost Recovery Fees) Regulations 2007.

Genetics: Databases

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) adults and  (b) children resident in Northern Ireland appear on the national DNA database; how many do not have any convictions or cautions in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: I have been asked to reply.
	Responsibility for the maintenance and development of the national DNA database lies with the Home Office, however I am advised that the total number of subject sample profiles currently retained on the National DNA database which were taken by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) is 39,055. These are categorised as follows:
	Samples taken from children (those aged under 18)—3,355
	Samples taken from adults (those aged 18 and over)—35,700.
	The aforementioned figures relate to the number of subject sample profiles retained and not the number of individuals from whom samples have been taken, as DNA samples have been taken from some individuals on more than one occasion. The National DNA database does not hold information on a person's address, which means that a sample taken by the PSNI will not necessarily relate to a person resident in Northern Ireland.
	Information on convictions and cautions is not held on the national database and it is therefore not possible to provide a breakdown against DNA samples retained.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 5 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1751-2W, on human trafficking, how many of those charged under each section in each year were convicted; and how many in each category were sentenced to a term of imprisonment.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 19 March 2007
	 Data on the number of defendants convicted, sentenced, and given immediate custody at all courts' under S57, S58, S59 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003; and S25 (1)(a), S25(1)(b), S25(1)(c), S25, S25A, S25B of the Immigration Act 1971, in England and Wales in 2005, from the court proceedings database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform can be found in the following table. The 2006 Court proceedings data will be available in the autumn of 2007.
	
		
			  The number of defendants convicted, sentenced, and given immediate custody at all courts' under 557, S58, S58 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003; and S25(1)(a), S25(1)(b), S25(1)(c), S25, S25A, S25B of the Immigration Act 1971, in England and Wales in 2005( 1,2,3) 
			 Of those Sentenced 
			  Statute  Offence description  Found guilty  Sentenced  Immediate custody 
			 Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.57 Arrange/facilitate arrival into the UK of a person for sexual exploitation (Trafficking) 9 9 9 
			 Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.58 Arrange/facilitate travel within the UK of a person for sexual exploitation (Trafficking) 3 3 3 
			 Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.59 Arrange/facilitate departure from the UK of a person for sexual exploitation (Trafficking) 0 0 0 
			 Immigration Act 1971 Sec 25(1) (a). Knowingly concerned in making or carrying out arrangements for securing or facilitating the entry into the UK of anyone whom he knows or has reasonable cause for believing to be an illegal entrant. 84 103 94 
			 Immigration Act 1971 Sec 25(1 )(b) as added by Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 S.5. Knowingly concerned in making or carrying out arrangements for securing or facilitating the entry into the UK of anyone whom he knows or has reasonable cause for believing to be an asylum claimant. 3 4 3 
			 Immigration Act 1971 Sec 25(1 )(c) as added by Asylum and Immigration Act 1996 S.5. Knowingly concerned in making or carrying out arrangements for securing or facilitating the obtaining of leave to remain in the UK by means which he knows or has reasonable cause for believing to include deception. 0 1 1 
			 Immigration Act 1971 S25 as added by Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 S143 Assisting unlawful immigration to member state (was 194/11 and 12) 55 45 39 
			 Immigration Act 1971 S25A as added by Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 S143 Helping asylum-seeker to enter the UK 7 6 6 
			 Immigration Act 1971 S25B as added by Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 S143 Assisting entry to UK in breach of deportation order or exclusion order 2 11 11 
			 Total  163 182 166 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2 )Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3 )The sentenced column may exceed those found guilty, as it may be the case that a defendant found guilty and committed for sentence at the crown court may be sentenced in the following year.  Source:  RDS Office for Criminal Justice Reform  Our ref: IOS 237-07

Immigrants: Turkey

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on changes to the terms of the Ankara Agreement with Turkey; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The Ankara Agreement has not recently been discussed by Home Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Ministers and no changes to its terms are planned. Any change to the Ankara Agreement would have to be negotiated by the EU and Turkey.

Road Traffic Act 1988

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with chief constables on the deployment of officers to enforce section 41D of the Road Traffic Act 1988; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: Deployment of resources is an operational matter for individual chief officers. This particular issue has not featured in my discussions with them.

Road Traffic Act 1988

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been  (a) prosecuted and  (b) convicted in (i) Essex, (ii) Southend and (iii) England and Wales of an offence under section 41D of the Road Traffic Act 1988 since that section came into force.

Vernon Coaker: Section 41D of the Road Traffic Act 1988 was inserted by the Road Safety Act 2006 and came into effect on 27 February 2007. Data on its operation will be available in 2009.
	Using a mobile phone whilst driving became an offence under earlier legislation in December 2003. Information on this offence can be found in Offences relating to motor vehicles—Supplementary tables 2003 and Offences relating to motor vehicles—supplementary tables 2004, available in the Library and at:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pubsstatistical.html

Safety Belts: Vans

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will launch a campaign to target van drivers not wearing seat belts in breach of the 50 metre delivery exemption limit.

Vernon Coaker: Failure to wear a seat belt in this situation is an offence under section 14 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and associated regulations. The Roads Policing Strategy, agreed by ACPO, the Department for Transport and the Home Office recognises failure to wear seat belts generally as one of the key behaviours leading to avoidable deaths and injuries on the roads and gives an undertaking to tackle it. Enforcement of the law is an operational matter for individual chief officers of police. I have no plans to ask them to launch such a campaign.

Serious Organised Crime Agency: Finance

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total expenditure on setting up and running the Serious Organised Crime Agency has been since its creation, broken down by region.

Vernon Coaker: The information is as follows:
	 Running costs:
	An analysis of SOCA expenditure by region is not available. Final costs will be reported through the audited financial accounts and laid before Parliament later in the year.
	 Set- up costs:
	(a) Set-up costs 2005-06
	These were reported in the 2005-06 accounts of the Home Office, the National Crime Squad (NCS) and the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS), each of which incurred expenditure to support the set-up of SOCA. In total, £8.9 million net additional resource expenditure plus capital expenditure of £7.73 million was incurred. Additionally, in 2005-06, NCS and NCIS also reported a total of £10.65 million of their core budget expenditure as being related to SOCA preparations. This included the value of NCS/NCIS staff time spent on the implementation and planning for the new Agency.
	(b) Transitional Costs 2006-07
	Transition costs in 2006-07 of £33.5 million; including a one-off cost of approximately £8 million, were incurred.

Theft: Mobile Phones

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he  (a) has taken and  (b) plans to take to reduce the theft of mobile telephones; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: Mobile phone theft is a key driver for robbery. The Government, police and industry have developed a strong partnership working together to tackle mobile phone theft. The Mobile Phone Crime Reduction Charter was launched by industry leaders in July 2006 and successfully achieved its target of blocking over 80 per cent. of stolen handsets within 48 hours. The Government and Metropolitan police fund a National Mobile Phone Crime Unit to provide a national centre of excellence and operational support around the country. We have robust legislation in place to target criminals who re-programme stolen handsets. The Government are continuing to engage industry on the issue of better crime proofing handsets as they become increasingly multi-functional in the future.

Theft: Wheelie Bins

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what data are recorded in relation to the theft of wheelie bins.

Vernon Coaker: No statistics are available centrally in relation to the thefts of wheelie bins. Such offences would be included within the recorded crime classification of 'other theft'.

Vladimir Ismaili

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 20 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 1059-60W, on Vladimir Ismaili, whether Vladimir Ismaili has been recaptured; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 12 June 2007
	Vladimir Ismaili is still at large and a warrant for his arrest has been issued by Manchester Crown court.

Written Questions

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to answer questions  (a) 129923 and  (b) 129924, on illegal firearms, tabled on 21 March by the hon. Member for Taunton.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 30 April 2007
	I replied to the hon. Member on 11 June 2007,  Official Report, column 890W.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan: International Assistance

John MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan.

Hilary Benn: The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is regularly assessed by the Afghan Government and the UN. DFID is in close touch with the Government of Afghanistan (GoA) and the UN on these issues, which include the situation of refugees and returnees, those affected by severe weather conditions and those affected by mines.
	Since 2001 over 4.8 million refugees have returned to Afghanistan. During a six week grace period from March-May 2007, 200,000 refugees returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan with assistance from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Statistics indicate that Kabul, Nangahar and Kunduz are absorbing the largest number of returnees at 51 per cent. UNHCR state they are coping well with the influx of returnees and are facilitating safe returns, which includes addressing any problems returnees may face on their journey back to Afghanistan, and providing any support once they have arrived at their final destination.
	We have received a number of reports from diplomatic and other sources on the expulsion of illegal Afghan migrants from Iran. We are in close contact with the Government of Afghanistan and the office of the UNHCR on this issue. The UN WFP has despatched food to Zaranj, the main entry point into Afghanistan for families being deported from Iran.
	Severe weather conditions like the recent rains and snow melt in Helmand caused considerable flooding. The Provincial Government response was supported by the UN, which has provided assistance to 735 households (5,145 people). The UK-led Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) supported a request to air-lift a pump to the dam. No further request for PRT assistance has been made to date.
	17 per cent. of the Afghan population are living in one of 2,374 mine-contaminated communities. DFID has provided up to £1.4 million this year as part of HALO's three year global mine action programme for 2007-10.

Burma: Overseas Aid

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what grants his Department provided for environmental projects in Burma in each of the last five years; and what the value of each grant was.

Gareth Thomas: DFID is providing £4 million over four years to the United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Initiative in Burma. The project aims (i) to strengthen the capacity of poor communities to address their basic needs; and (ii) to provide continued and constructive engagement with selected remote rural communities in the areas of social development and sustainable livelihoods. One of the intended project outcomes is an increased local capacity for sustainable environmental management, achieved through improved community skills for good environmental management; better planning by communities of the use of their local natural resources; and the introduction of energy-efficient technologies and community forestry initiatives to reduce the demand for wood for fuel.
	DFID has also provided a grant of £580,000 over three years to the non-governmental organisation Forest Trends, to assess the impacts of the Chinese timber market throughout SE Asia, including in Burma. Copies of their reports are available at:
	www.forest-trends.org
	The British Embassy in Rangoon has recently provided a grant of £32,000 from the Grassroots Development Programme (GDP) fund to support seven environmental projects in Burma. The main objectives of the projects are to enhance village livelihoods through an improved management of agriculture, natural resource and agro forestry.

Departments: Official Residences

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list the official ministerial residences allocated to Ministers in his Department; and what the total annual cost is of running each.

Hilary Benn: No Ministers in the Department for International Development are allocated a ministerial residence.

Developing Countries: AIDS

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations he has received on the target of access to AIDS treatment for all in the developing world by 2010.

Gareth Thomas: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development received letters on universal access by 2010 from a number of campaign groups. Members of Parliament, and members of the public in the run up to the G8 summit in Heiligendamm. The G8 reaffirmed their commitment to the goal of universal access to comprehensive HIV/AIDS prevention programmes, treatment, care and support by 2010, and pledged to contribute $60 billion towards fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria and TB over the coming years.

G8 Commitments: Poverty Relief

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on progress on the 2005 G8 commitments on poverty relief.

Hilary Benn: DFID submits a regular report to Parliament detailing progress against agreed commitment milestones arising from the 2005 G8 commitments on poverty relief.

Overseas Aid

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what factors account for the growth in his Department's bilateral spending on grants and other aid in kind, excluding funding for partnership programme agreements and other Civil Society Organisations since 2001-02; and which institutions were the major recipients.

Gareth Thomas: holding answer 11 June 2007
	 The heading "grants and other aid in kind" is used for statistical purposes to classify DFID bilateral assistance which is not covered by the main aid-type categories such as financial aid (including budget support), technical co-operation and humanitarian assistance. In addition to funding for partnership programme agreements and other civil society organisations this category will include, amongst other things, a growing proportion of DFID bilateral support which is disbursed through international institutions and multilateral organisations. This funding is additional to core contributions to these organisations which are reported separately. For example in Sudan, DFID has committed £47 million over three years to two multi-donor trust funds administered through the World Bank. But, in general, projects and programmes coded under this heading are too diverse to provide a meaningful summary or an isolated cause for the overall increase. However, DFID is in the process of reassessing the way it categorises this element of its aid programme to provide a more useful breakdown for users in future reports.

JUSTICE

Human Rights

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Ministry of Justice what plans she has to attend meetings with foreign counterparts to discuss the promotion of human rights.

Vera Baird: From time to time, the Secretary of State for Justice and Baroness Ashton meet with their foreign counterparts to discuss topics of common interest, including human rights. Ministers in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office also regularly discuss human rights issues with their counterparts. Neither the Secretary of State nor Baroness Ashton has any such meetings specifically planned at this time.

Legal Aid

Philip Dunne: To ask the Minister of State, Ministry of Justice how many firms of solicitors who previously undertook legal aid work did not sign the new contract for legal aid work.

Vera Baird: The Legal Services Commission's (LSC) new unified contract applies for civil legal aid providers from 1 April 2007. 2,408 of 2,531 unified contracts were signed and returned to the LSC by solicitors. This represents 95 per cent. of civil legal aid solicitors.

Legal Aid: Interpreters

Anthony Steen: To ask Minister of State, Ministry of Justice what expenditure in 2006-07 was for interpreters in the legal aid system; and what expenditure is forecast for 2007-08.

Vera Baird: The information is not available. Legal aid expenditure on interpreters forms part of the overall disbursement claimed by legal service providers and cannot be separately identified.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Minister of State, Ministry of Justice when she plans to reply to the letter to her dated 30 April from the right hon. Member for Manchester Gorton with regard to Mr. M. A. Raja.

Vera Baird: My right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor replied to my right hon. Friend on 4 June and the letter was sent on 7 June. I apologise for the delay.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Departments: Freedom of Information

Michael Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of monitoring the time spent processing requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for the purposes of the proposed fees regulations.

Peter Hain: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 22 February 2007,  Official Report, column 866W, by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at that time for the Department for Constitutional Affairs (now the Ministry of Justice).

District Policing Partnerships

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total cost was of district policing partnerships in Northern Ireland for the year ending 31 December 2006.

Paul Goggins: The cost of District Policing Partnerships (DPPs) is not available for the year ending 31 December 2006, as information is compiled according to the financial year, 1 April to 31 March.
	The cost of DPPs for the financial year ending 31 March 2007 was £3.78 million. Funding provided by NIPB was £2.8 million and funding from local councils was £0.98 million.

Immigrants

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the  (a) number of (i) Polish, (ii) Lithuanian, (iii) Romanian, (iv) Chinese, (v) Portuguese and (vi) other foreign nationals living in Northern Ireland and  (b) number of foreign nationals who arrived in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Peter Hain: This is now the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Administration.

Medicine: Education

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the ratio of specialty training to fixed term specialty training appointments is in each specialty in England.

Rosie Winterton: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Percentage split of posts by post type 
			Post types (percentage) 
			  Specialty  Theme  Specialty training  Fixed-term specialist training appointment (FTSTA)  Academic 
			 Acute care common stem (ACCS) Acute medicine 83 17 0 
			  Anaesthesia 80 20 0 
			  Emergency medicine 70 29 1 
			  Intensive care medicine 0 100 0 
			 Acute medicine  100 0 0 
			 Allergy  100 0 0 
			 Anaesthesia  71 28 0 
			 Audiological medicine  67 0 33 
			 Cardiology  98 0 2 
			 Cardiothoracic surgery  83 0 17 
			 Chemical pathology  100 0 0 
			 Child and adolescent psychiatry  100 0 0 
			 Clinical genetics  80 0 20 
			 Clinical neurophysiology  88 0 13 
			 Clinical oncology  97 0 3 
			 Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics  75 0 25 
			 Clinical radiology  96 0 4 
			 Core medical training  65 34 1 
			 Dermatology  100 0 0 
			 Emergency medicine  94 6 0 
			 Endocrinology and diabetes  97 0 3 
			 Forensic psychiatry  96 0 4 
			 Gastroenterology  100 0 0 
			 General adult psychiatry  99 0 1 
			 General practice  100 0 0 
			 General surgery  99 0 1 
			 Genito-urinary medicine  100 0 0 
			 Geriatric medicine  97 0 3 
			 Haematology  95 0 5 
			 Histopathology  100 0 0 
			 Immunology  80 0 20 
			 Infectious diseases  100 0 0 
			 Infectious diseases and medical microbiology and virology (MMV) Medical microbiology 100 0 0 
			 Infectious diseases and MMV Virology 50 0 50 
			 Medical microbiology and virology  87 13 0 
			 Medical microbiology and virology  100 0 0 
			 Medical oncology  75 0 25 
			 Medical ophthalmology  100 0 0 
			 Neurology  90 0 10 
			 Neurosurgery  60 39 1 
			 Nuclear medicine  100 0 0 
			 Obstetrics and gynaecology  85 14 1 
			 Occupational medicine  100 0 0 
			 Old age psychiatry  100 0 0 
			 Ophthalmology  59 40 0 
			 Oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS)  78 22 0 
			 Otolaryngology (ENT)  98 0 2 
			 Paediatric cardiology  100 0 0 
			 Paediatric surgery  100 0 0 
			 Paediatrics  72 28 1 
			 Palliative medicine  100 0 0 
			 Plastic surgery  98 0 2 
			 Psychiatry  67 32 1 
			 Psychiatry of learning disability  100 0 0 
			 Psychotherapy  100 0 0 
			 Public health  90 0 10 
			 Rehabilitation medicine  96 0 4 
			 Renal medicine  93 0 7 
			 Respiratory Medicine  100 0 0 
			 Rheumatology  96 0 4 
			 Sports and exercise medicine  100 0 0 
			 Surgery in general Cardiothoracic Surgery 3 97 0 
			 Surgery in general General surgery 33 66 1 
			 Surgery in general Generic 56 42 2 
			 Surgery in general Otolaryngology (ENT) 36 62 2 
			 Surgery in general Paediatric surgery 45 55 0 
			 Surgery in general Plastic surgery 38 61 1 
			 Surgery in general Trauma and orthopaedic surgery 41 59 0 
			 Surgery in general Urology 41 57 3 
			 Trauma and orthopaedic surgery  98 0 2 
			 Urology  96 0 4 
			   14,600 4,400 200 
			 Grand total  (76) (23) (1)

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Business: East Sussex

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many business start-ups there were in  (a) Eastbourne and  (b) East Sussex in each year since 1997.

Margaret Hodge: Value added tax (VAT) registrations are the best official guide to the pattern of business start-ups. DTI data on the number of VAT registrations, and the start of year stock of VAT registered businesses, in East Sussex and Eastbourne from 1997 to 2005 are shown in the following table. Data for 2006 will be available autumn 2007.
	
		
			  VAT registrations and start of year VAT stock 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			  Eastbourne   
			 Registrations 245 210 250 220 260 220 285 195 250 n/a 
			 Stock 1,980 2,010 2,015 2,065 2,070 2,145 2,125 2,180 2,130 2,180 
			
			  East Sussex   
			 Registrations 1,750 1,620 1,650 1,610 1,580 1,670 1,725 1,460 1,530 n/a 
			 Stock 15,360 15,705 16,005 16,265 16,460 16,615 16,865 17,045 17,030 17,205 
			  Source: Business Start-ups and Closures: VAT Registrations and De-registrations 1994-2005, Small Business Service, available from: http://www.dtistats.net/smes/vat/index.htm 
		
	
	Although numbers of registrations in Eastbourne and East Sussex have remained fairly constant, the start of year stock has risen by 10 per cent. over the period in Eastbourne, and by 12 per cent. in East Sussex.
	VAT registration and de-registration data do not capture all business activity. Businesses are unlikely to be registered if their turnover falls below the compulsory VAT threshold, which has risen in each year since 1997. Similarly, businesses that de-register may not have closed. Only 1.8 million out of 4.3 million businesses (42 per cent.) were registered for VAT at the start of 2005.

Cement

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what tonnage of bagged ordinary portland cement was imported into the UK in each quarter of each year since 2004; [R]
	(2)  what tonnage of bulk ordinary portland cement was imported into the UK in each quarter of each year since 2004. [R]

Margaret Hodge: Figures are not available separately for bagged and bulk portland cement. HM Revenue and Customs Overseas Trade Statistics give the following figures for imports of portland cement, whether or not coloured, in thousand tonnes.
	
		
			  Imports of portland cement 
			   Quarter  Weight (thousand tonnes) 
			 2004 Q1 413 
			  Q2 546 
			  Q3 604 
			  Q4 458 
			
			 2005 Q1 509 
			  Q2 403 
			  Q3 376 
			  Q4 289 
			
			 2006 Q1 357 
			  Q2 375 
			  Q3 325 
			  Q4 340 
			  Source: Overseas Trade Statistics.

Cement

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what tonnage of bagged cement (with additives) was  (a) produced in the UK and  (b) imported into the UK in each quarter of each year since 2004;
	(2)  what tonnage of ordinary Portland cement was produced in the UK in each quarter of each year since 2004.

Margaret Hodge: The Office for National Statistics publishes annual figures for Product Sales and Trade: Cement (PRA 26510). Combining the figures for white and grey Portland cement gives the following volume data in million tonnes.
	
		
			  Tonnes (million) 
			   UK manufacturer sales  Total exports  Total imports  UK net supply 
			 2004 12.2 0.2 2.0 14.0 
			 2005 12.1 0.3 1.6 13.3 
			 2006 11.2 0.6 1.4 12.1

Clothing: Safety

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what the reasons are for the differences in the safety flammability requirements set out by the Nightwear (Safety) Regulations 1985 for pyjamas and nightdresses; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what representations he has received requesting a review of the applicability of the Nightwear Regulations to pyjamas;
	(3)  if he will assess the merits of extending to pyjamas the flammability requirements of the Nightwear Regulations applying to other nightwear.

Ian McCartney: I have received no direct representations on this issue. I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton), on 21 May 2007,  Official Report, column 1041W. I also refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave her on 14 June 2007,  Official R eport, column 1266W, covering the question of amending the Nightwear (Safety) Regulations 1985 to make it compulsory for children's pyjamas to meet the flammability requirements of the regulations. Regarding the reason for differentiating between pyjamas and nightdresses, a line was drawn between them on the basis that nightdresses involve free-flowing designs which are more likely to catch light from open fires. Nightdresses which comply with the flammability test of the regulations tend to be made from man-made fibres such as polyester. Pyjamas and nightdresses made from cotton would need to be treated with flame retardant chemicals in order to pass the same test. Such chemicals can affect the feel and comfortability of the fabric, and could pose problems for allergy sufferers. It is important to note that even chemically treated fabrics, and those with natural flame resistance, will not be completely safe from ignition, so parental guidance and supervision has a key role here, too. Legislation has to seek to provide a balance between appropriate levels of fire safety and health/comfortability requirements.

Companies: Allergies

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  how much his Department spent on providing information to companies on compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 in relation to allergies in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what information his Department provides to companies on compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 in relation to allergies.

Jim Fitzpatrick: holding answer s 4 June 2007
	General guidance on employers' responsibilities under the Disability Discrimination Act is available on the employing people pages on businesslink.gov and on the Department for Work and Pensions site as the Department responsible for the Act. The DTI has not spent any further money on providing information to companies on allergies and the Disability Discrimination Act in the five year period.

Company Liquidations: North West Region

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many company liquidations took place in the North West in each year since 1997.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The following table records the numbers of compulsory liquidations in the "North West" region classified according to Official Receiver's (OR) Offices from 1999-2000 to 2006-07. Figures have been provided by financial year due to the movement of individual OR offices between broader regions coinciding with financial years. Prior to 1999-2000 the "North West" region did not exist separately and the Northern region (as it was then included OR offices in the "North East". For this reason comparable figures for the earlier years are not readily available.
	Number of Compulsory Liquidations in the North West for each financial year from 1999-2000:
	
		
			  Financial year  Compulsory liquidations 
			 1999-2000 672 
			 2000-01 620 
			 2001-02 651 
			 2002-03 927 
			 2003-04 629 
			 2004-05(1) 522 
			 2005-06(1) 721 
			 2006-07(2) 707 
			 (1) In 2004-05 and 2005-06 Stoke-on-Trent moved to the Midlands region and is not included in the above figures for those years. In 2004-05 there were 62 compulsory liquidations under the Stoke-on-Trent Office, in 2005-06 there were 95. (2) In 2006-07 Stoke-on-Trent moved back to the North West region.  Note: Official Receiver's offices in the North West region include Blackpool, Chester, Liverpool, Manchester and Stoke-on-Trent.

Departments: Caparo Group

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies have made payments to Caparo Group or its companies since 1997.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There is no record of any payment by DTI to any of the companies in the Caparo Group since the implementation of the current finance system in September 2003. To access records before this date would incur disproportionate cost.
	The Department does not hold financial records at this level of detail for its agencies.

Departments: Manpower

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many staff funded by the public purse in each regional development agency are classified as people without posts.

Margaret Hodge: The Regional Development Agencies tell me that they have no staff funded by the public purse who are classified as without posts.

Electronic Equipment: Waste Disposal

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many civic amenity sites are registered as designated collection facilities for all five categories of waste electrical and electronic equipment under the EU Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.

Malcolm Wicks: Of the 1,046 civic amenity sites which have applied for designated collection facilities approval 867 will collect all five categories of WEEE.

Electronic Equipment: Waste Disposal

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive designated collection facilities are in rural areas.

Malcolm Wicks: There are 1,046 local authority civic amenity sites that have registered as designated collection facilities (DCFs). This represents 100 per cent. of local authority sites in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland and 97 per cent. of sites in England. In addition there are a further 400 private DCFs including local authority waste transfer stations.

Electronic Equipment: Waste Disposal

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many compliance schemes are available for electronic producers with recycling obligations under the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations.

Malcolm Wicks: There are 37 approved producer compliance schemes registered with the environment authorities, details of which are available on both the DTI website:
	http://www.dti.gov.uk/innovation/sustainability/weee/page30269.html
	and the Environment Agency website:
	http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/weee

Energy: Shoreham

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment his Department has made as part of its energy review of the uses to which Shoreham Harbour and its surrounding areas might be put.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 14 June 2007
	The Department's White Paper "Meeting the Energy Challenge" sets out the Government's international and domestic energy strategy to respond to the challenges identified in the 2006 Energy Review Report. It does not include assessments of geographically specific areas.

Gardens: Heating

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what his estimate is based on figures from the Market Transformation Programme of the number of  (a) gas and  (b) other outdoor patio heaters there are used by (i) households and (ii) businesses.

Malcolm Wicks: I refer my hon. Friend the reply given by my hon. Friend the Minister for Climate Change and the Environment, on 12 June 2007,  Official  R eport, column 917W.

Insolvency

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many extensions to the three-year period referred to in section 238A(2) of the Insolvency Act 1986 insolvency agencies have applied for in order to pursue people under section 238A(6) of that Act.

Jim Fitzpatrick: As the hon. Member is no doubt aware, there is no section 238A in the Insolvency Act 1986, and I assume that the question relates to section 283A of that Act.
	In cases where the Official Receiver is trustee in bankruptcy there are two cases where such extensions have been sought. Both are yet to be determined by the court. I am also aware of another case where there is an application for either a charging order or an extension of the three-year period. That case is also yet to be determined.
	There may however be cases where a licensed insolvency practitioner is the trustee in bankruptcy and a similar application has been made. The Insolvency Service would not automatically be notified in such cases. HM Courts Service records do not show this information.

Low Carbon Buildings Programme

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many grants were awarded under the Low Carbon Buildings Programme in each month of 2007; how many in each month were for solar photovoltaics; and what the value was of each grant.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 12 June 2007
	The following table sets out the total number of grants awarded under the Low Carbon Buildings Programme phase 1 in each month of 2007 for all technologies, with specific information on grants awarded to solar photovoltaics installations.
	
		
			  2007  Technology  Grant values  Number of grants awarded  Total amount of grant offered (£) 
			 January Solar Photovoltaic  34 234,058.45 
			   Up to £2,999 1 2,671.20 
			   £3,000 to £3,999 6 20,190.00 
			   £4,000 to £4,999 2 8,625.77 
			   £5,000 to £5,999 3 17,072.64 
			   £6,000 to £6,999 8 51 ,779.25 
			   £7,000 to £7,999 4 30,061.43 
			   £8,000 to £8,999 3 25,506.16 
			   £9,000 to £9,999 2 18,750.00 
			   £10,000 to £10,999 3 31,119.50 
			   £11,000 to £11,999 0 0.00 
			   £12,000 to £12,999 0 0.00 
			   £13,000 to £13,999 1 13,282.50 
			   £14,000 to £15,000 1 15,000.00 
			  All technologies  248 476,823.92 
			  
			 February Solar Photovoltaic  43 343,557.83 
			   Up to £2,999 0 0.00 
			   £3,000 to £3,999 5 17,130.00 
			   £4,000 to £4,999 3 13,970.00 
			   £5,000 to £5,999 7 38,470.28 
			   £6,000 to £6,999 10 61,737.05 
			   £7,000 to £7,999 2 15,010.00 
			   £8,000 to £8,999 1 8,492.50 
			   £9,000 to £9,999 3 28,600.00 
			   £10,000 to £10,999 2 21,000.00 
			   £11,000 to £11,999 1 11,480.00 
			   £12,000 to £12,999 0 0.00 
			   £13,000 to £13,999 6 82,785.00 
			   £14,000 to £15,000 3 44,883.00 
			  All technologies  185 465,017.25 
			  
			 March Solar Photovoltaic  63 462,127.95 
			   Up to £2,999 1 2,475.00 
			   £3,000 to £3,999 10 38,490.00 
			   £4,000 to £4,999 7 31,969.34 
			   £5,000 to £5,999 7 38,044.56 
			   £6,000 to £6,999 10 62,605.00 
			   £7,000 to £7,999 6 45,630.00 
			   £8,000 to £8,999 5 42,324.50 
			   £9,000 to £9,999 7 64,437.05 
			   £10,000 to £10,999 1 10,800.00 
			   £11,000 to £11,999 1 11,428.50 
			   £12,000 to £12,999 2 25,350.00 
			   £13,000 to £13,999 1 13,610.00 
			   £14,000 to £15,000 5 74,964.00 
			  All technologies  190 646,676.95 
			  
			 May Solar Photovoltaic  46 112,780.00 
			   Up to £2,999 46 112,780.00 
			   £3,000 to £3,999 0 0.00 
			   £4,000 to £4,999 0 0.00 
			   £5,000 to £5,999 0 0.00 
			   £6,000 to £6,999 0 0.00 
			   £7,000 to £7,999 0 0.00 
			   £8,000 to £8,999 0 0.00 
			   £9,000 to £9,999 0 0.00 
			   £10,000 to £10,999 0 0.00 
			   £11,000 to £11,999 0 0.00 
			   £12,000 to £12,999 0 0.00 
			   £13,000 to £13,999 0 0.00 
			   £14,000 to £15,000 0 0.00 
			  All technologies  295 317,615.40 
			  
			 June Solar Photovoltaic  23 52,975.84 
			   Up to £2,999 23 52,975.84 
			   £3,000 to £3,999 0 0.00 
			   £4,000 to £4,999 0 0.00 
			   £5,000 to £5,999 0 0.00 
			   £6,000 to £6,999 0 0.00 
			   £7,000 to £7,999 0 0.00 
			   £8,000 to £8,999 0 0.00 
			   £9,000 to £9,999 0 0.00 
			   £10,000 to £10,999 0 0.00 
			   £11,000 to £11,999 0 0.00 
			   £12,000 to £12,999 0 0.00 
			   £13,000 to £13,999 0 0.00 
			   £14,000 to £15,000 0 0.00 
			  All technologies  129 122,436.30

Low Carbon Buildings Programme

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was spent on administering the Low Carbon Buildings Programme in the 2006-07 financial year.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 12 June 2007
	For the 2006-07 financial year, the total administration costs for the Low Carbon Buildings Programme Phase 1 was £509,044.54. This included set up costs for Phase 1, which started in April 06. Phase 2 started in December 2006 and the total administration costs for 2006-07 financial year was £130,625, including set up costs.
	These costs do not include work undertaken by civil servants in supporting delivery of the programme.

Low Carbon Buildings Programme

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was spent on the recent restructuring of the Low Carbon Buildings Programme.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 12 June 2007
	 The overall costs are forecast to be in the region of £90,000.

Maternity Leave: Paternity Leave

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent estimate he has made of the take-up rates of  (a) paid maternity leave,  (b) unpaid maternity leave,  (c) paid paternity leave and  (d) unpaid paternity leave in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jim Fitzpatrick: holding answer 9 May 2007
	 The most recent estimates are based on the Maternity and Paternity rights and benefits in Britain: Survey of Parents, conducted in 2005. The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby in December 2003 and their partners. Of mothers in paid work, all took at least some of their entitlement to maternity leave, and 98 per cent. received some form of maternity pay; approximately 2 per cent. of mothers in paid work did not receive maternity pay.
	Of fathers in paid work, 93 per cent. said they had taken some leave around the time of the birth. Of these, around 80 per cent. said they had used at least some of their statutory paid paternity leave entitlement which was brought in 2003. The remainder took other forms of leave. No estimate has been made of the take-up of unpaid paternity, although almost all fathers who qualify for paternity leave will also qualify for Statutory Paternity leave.
	The report findings from this survey is available in the Members' library, on the DTI website at http;//www.dti.gov.uk/files/file27446.pgf and from the DTI Publications Order-line 08701 502500, quoting URN 06/836.

Nuclear Power Stations

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what consideration his Department makes of population density when considering potential locations for new power stations;
	(2)  whether his Department has identified any sites for potential new nuclear power stations to be built in Sussex;
	(3)  what criteria his Department uses to determine the location of new nuclear power stations.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer s 14 June 2007
	DTI has not identified any locations for new nuclear power stations. Any new nuclear power stations would be built by the private sector but no decisions would be taken on any potential location for a new nuclear power station pending the carrying out of a full strategic siting assessment (SSA).
	DTI is consulting on a proposed process for carrying out an SSA. If the Government confirms its preliminary view that it is in the public interest to allow energy companies the option of investing in new nuclear power stations, DTI would consult separately on the siting criteria that would underpin such an assessment. Such criteria would include demographic considerations, including with regard to population density and distribution. In addition to the SSA, any proposed new nuclear sites would need to comply with the rigorous site-specific safety and environmental requirements of the independent regulators.

Post Offices

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the performance of Crown Post Offices transferred to the private sector in  (a) England and  (b) Worcestershire; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: None. Operational matters are the direct responsibility of the company's management.
	However, results of Post Office Ltd's customer surveys from the six pilot franchises to WH Smith last year are overwhelmingly positive. The majority of customers welcome the pleasant environment, excellent levels of customer service, convenient locations and extended opening hours.

Post Offices: Somerset

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he plans to publish his proposals on post office closures in Somerset; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: On 17 May my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced the Government's response to public consultation on the Post Office network.
	Now that the Government have announced their decisions it will be for Post Office Ltd. to strategically develop the network through 50 to 60 local area implementation plans over the next 18 months.
	Following initial input from sub-postmasters, Postwatch and local authorities, these plans will include closure proposals which will then be put to local consultation ahead of final decisions.

Radioactive Materials

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate his Department has made of the total amount of radioactive material unaccounted for from nuclear power stations since their establishment.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 11 June 2007
	Following consultation with the hon. Member, the question will be answered with respect to nuclear material unaccounted for (MUF). MUF is the inventory difference that occurs when the result of a physical inventory of nuclear material is compared with the book inventory. The difference may be negative (an apparent loss) or positive (an apparent gain). MUF is a recognised feature of accounting for nuclear material at processing plants and is caused primarily by the uncertainties inherent in the techniques used to measure nuclear material. An explanation of MUF is available at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/nuclear/safeguards/muf.htm.
	There should be no such MUF for nuclear power stations. Nuclear material in the form of discrete items (fuel elements) is added to the inventory on receipt at the power station site and subtracted from that inventory when fuel is shipped from the site.
	Nuclear materials balance figures for UK sites where nuclear material is processed, and hence MUF arises, are published annually. For figures since 1974, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) on 15 June 2004,  Official Report, column 820W. More recent figures are available at the UK Safeguards Office website at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/nuclear/safeguards/materials.htm.
	There is no evidence to suggest that there have been any real losses or gains of nuclear material.

Royal Mail: Government Assistance

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment was made of compliance with EU rules on state aid before each of the four instances of Government assistance to Royal Mail being investigated by the European Commission was announced.

Alistair Darling: holding answer 4 June 2007
	The support that the Government have given to the Royal Mail mails business has been provided on a commercial basis. This has been verified by independent sources.

Turbines: Health Hazards

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 14 May 2007,  Official Report, column 1003W, on turbines: health hazards, what qualifications Hayes McKenzie possessed in relation to infrasound emitted by wind turbines; and what role medical experts played in the production of the report.

Malcolm Wicks: The Hayes McKenzie report for DTI "The measurement of Low Frequency Noise at three UK wind farms" investigated the levels of low frequency noise and infrasound emitted by wind turbines, it was not within the remit of the study to undertake new medical analysis.
	However, the study did refer to the document prepared for the World Health Organization "Community Noise" which states that
	"there is no reliable evidence that infrasounds below the hearing threshold produce physiological or psychological effects".
	It also referenced work undertaken for DEFRA on low frequency noise and its effects.
	Dr. Andrew McKenzie and Malcolm Hayes are acoustic experts with between them over 45 years experience. They have conducted work in relation to wind turbines at over 400 proposed, consented or completed sites in the UK and overseas.

Turbines: Health Hazards

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research his Department has carried out on the numbers of individuals and households adversely affected by infrasound emitted by wind turbines.

Malcolm Wicks: DTI and DEFRA have recently commissioned a report by Salford university one of the objectives of which is
	"to establish the levels and nature of the noise complaints received across the UK relating to noise issues from wind farms, both historic and current, and determine whether Aerodynamic Modulation (AM) is a significant effect".
	This report will be published later this summer.

TRANSPORT

Cycle to Work Scheme

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many institutions are participating in the Cycle to Work scheme in  (a) the UK and  (b) Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland.

Tom Harris: This information is not centrally collected as the scheme is not run by central Government.
	Employers are responsible for implementing the scheme where they can take advantage of the tax exemption provided in the Finance Act 1999 and the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 to provide cycles for their employees to commute to work.

Freight: Blaenau Ffestiniog

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to protect the Blaenau Ffestiniog goods yard for future freight use.

Tom Harris: Blaenau Ffestiniog goods yard was marketed extensively—over and above the normal consultation process that the company undertakes prior to putting a property up for sale—to the rail freight community during 2006. No interest in purchasing the site for rail freight use was received. In addition, no objections to the sale were received from the rail industry or from the Welsh Assembly Government who stated that there was no public or private interest in the site. As such, following the formal consultation process that BRB (Residuary) Ltd. are required to undertake prior to releasing properties for sale, the site was sold at auction on 6 June 2007.

Railways: Portsmouth

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will ensure that passengers receive compensation following the conclusions of the Office of Rail Regulation Report on the Portsmouth re-signalling project by Network Rail; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: Stagecoach South Western Trains is obligated to compensate passengers where disruption to services meets its compensation obligations under the National Rail Conditions of Carriage and in particular under its Passengers Charter.
	The Department has ensured that where necessary that Stagecoach South Western Trains has plans to meet its obligations to passengers.

TREASURY

Capital Gains Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research his Department has conducted on the effect of removing exemption from capital gains tax in relation to primary residences.

Edward Balls: Primary residences are exempt from capital gains tax. Figures relating to the cost of exempting gains on primary residences from capital gains tax are published in Table 1.5 on the HMRC website.

Capital Gains Tax: Tax Allowances

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the annual value of capital gains tax taper relief on carried interest in each of the last three financial years.

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the annual revenue yield from treating as income for tax purposes the capital gains received by private equity funds on disposals of assets held by the funds they manage; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Balls: Information is not collected in such a way as to enable these stimates to be made.

Child Tax Credit

Karen Buck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many parents of children aged 11 years and over were in receipt of the child care element of children's tax credit in each of the last three years.

Stephen Timms: The following table shows the number of in-work families with a child aged 11 years or over who were benefiting from the child care element of working tax credits at selected snapshot dates in the last three years.
	
		
			   Snapshot date 
			   April 2005  April 2006  April 2007 
			 Families with at least one child aged 11 or over 259,500 286,500 314,600 
			  Of which:
			 Families where all children were aged 11 or over 13,800 16,900 20,600 
		
	
	The bottom row of figures in the table shows families where all child care costs can be attributed to children aged 11 or over. For families with two or more children, it is not possible to say which child the family are claiming child care costs for. It is likely that most families with children under and over the age of 11 are claiming child care costs for younger siblings, as opposed to any child aged 11 or over.

Council Tax: Valuation

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Valuation Office Agency has the  (a) authority and  (b) ability to conduct a council tax rebanding exercise without a formal council tax revaluation.

Stephen Timms: Listing officers of the Valuation Office Agency have a duty, under the Local Government Finance Act 1992, to compile and maintain council tax valuation lists. Maintaining valuation lists can include work to re-band properties individually, in relation to their market value as at 1 April 1991, where the existing entries are found to be incorrect, but does not extend to a partial or full revaluation which requires express statutory authority by secondary legislation.

Debts: Burma

Paul Holmes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when Burma last repaid debt owed to the UK Government; what recent steps the Government have taken to recover debt owed by Burma; and what legal options are available to the Government to recover debt owed by Burma.

Edward Balls: ECGD—the Export Credits Guarantee Department—has unrecovered claims totalling £22.9 million in respect of seven contracts in the power, textile and water sectors on which claims were paid to UK banks/exporters between 1988 and 1998. There have been no recoveries since 1990.
	The UK also has two outstanding aid loans amounting to £1.06 million that are managed by the World Bank. These represent the UK's share of co-funded loans from the EU. The loans reverted to bilateral status in 2005. These loans are not currently being serviced by Burma.
	Given the economic and political situation in the country, HMG does not consider that legal action would be appropriate.

Pension Funds: Taxation

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what the actuarial valuation assumptions referred to in the Inland Revenue policy note of 21 May 1997 as very cautious were;
	(2)  what evidence the Inland Revenue's Savings and Investment Division collected to support its view expressed to him on 21 May 1997 that actuarial valuation assumptions tended to very cautious.

Edward Balls: The policy note of 21 May 1997 describes actuarial valuation assumptions as tending to be "very cautious", on the basis of advice from the Government Actuary's Department (GAD) that the dividend growth model used by actuaries implicitly assumes
	"a conservative real rate of return on equity. [This] tends to mean that actuarial value is somewhat less than the market value..."
	GAD's rationale is explained on pages 34 and 35 of the 27 June document released on 30 March.

Taxation: Quarrying

John Spellar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 1 May 2007,  Official Report, columns 1630-31W, on taxation: quarrying, what steps the Government are taking to specify in their procurement policies the use of recycled demolition waste rather than virgin aggregates.

Ben Bradshaw: I have been asked to reply.
	The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), established by Government, is encouraging major construction clients, their advisors and main contractors to make clear commitments to use products with higher recycled content. This includes encouraging the greater use in public sector construction projects of recycled demolition waste rather than virgin aggregates. WRAP's target for its 2006-08 business plan is for £10 billion worth of construction projects to set requirements for waste minimisation, recycling and recycled content. WRAP is making good progress towards achieving this target, and is working with other programmes to ensure that these commitments are put into effect.

Tree Preservation Orders

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidelines have been produced for the use of tree protection orders in relation to  (a) Crown land and  (b) the sale of Crown land to the private sector.

Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
	Paragraph 50 of Communities and Local Government's Circular 02/2006, "Crown Application of the Planning Acts", provides guidelines on the use of Tree Preservation orders (TPOs) on Crown land.
	No guidelines have been issued specifically on TPOs and the sale of Crown land to the private sector. However, the Department's policy document "Tree Preservation Orders: A Guide to the Law and Good Practice" makes clear that local planning authorities may consider it expedient to make TPOs where land, including Crown land, is about to change hands.

Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the project topic was of the Gateway Review undertaken for the Valuation Office Agency in October 2005.

Stephen Timms: This was a Gate 4 review of the Valuations Project, which formed part of the programme of projects in place to implement the council tax revaluation in England in 2007, which was postponed on 20 September 2005. The review was a pre-planned independent audit of the soundness of the work done up to that point, and the project was awarded 'Green status' to signal that the project was ready for implantation.

Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 26 January 2007,  Official Report, column 2134W, on the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), whether the VOA carbon off-set foreign visits made by their staff; and at what cost for visits made in the last 12 months.

Stephen Timms: As part of the Government estate, and to meet the sustainable operational targets, the VOA has recently committed to offset it's carbon dioxide emissions through the Government Carbon Offsetting Fund (GCOF). DEFRA advised, on the 18 May 2007, that the total cost to offset its emissions for 2006-07 financial year is £822.53 (for 83tCO2 emitted). This total includes domestic and international flights.

VAT: Memorials

Tony Baldry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many UK charities have been refunded VAT for the construction, renovation and maintenance of war memorials since August 2005; and what total sum has been refunded in that period.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	The Memorials Grant Scheme returns as a grant the equivalent of the VAT incurred by charities and faith groups in establishing or maintaining memorial structures. Since August 2005, grants totalling £660,000 have been made. Of this, grants totalling £529,851 have been made to nine UK charities for the construction, renovation or maintenance of war memorials. Additional sums have been paid to faith groups for the maintenance of war memorials in their care.

Welfare Tax Credits: Wimbledon

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many claimants of tax credit there are in Wimbledon.

Stephen Timms: Estimates for 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 of the number of in-work families with tax credits awards (including out-of-work families in 2005-06), based on final family circumstances and incomes for 2003-04, 2004- 05 and 2005-06 are published in "Child and Working Tax Credit Statistics. Finalised Annual Awards 2003-04 Geographical Analysis", "Child and Working Tax Credit Statistics. Finalised Annual Awards 2004-05 Geographical Analysis" and "Child and Working Tax Credit Statistics. Finalised Annual Awards 2005-06 Geographical Analysis". These publications and provisional estimates for the number of in-work families by constituency with tax credit awards as at selected dates in 2006-07 (including out-of-work families in April 2007) are available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm

Departments: Public Expenditure

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 27th March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1441-2W, on Departments: public expenditure, for which losses his Department was granted Treasury approval in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: I have been asked to reply.
	All losses incurred by the Home Office during the last five years have been managed by the Department within the scope of authorities delegated by the Treasury, the thresholds for which were set out in the reply provided to the hon. Member on 27 March 2007.
	The overall level of losses incurred by the Home Office in any one year is reported in its resource accounts.

WALES

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by his Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Peter Hain: 83,176 kilowatt hours—100 per cent. of the energy purchased by the Wales Office was from renewable sources in this current year.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what his strategy is for renewable energy and meeting energy targets in departmental buildings; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office, as an associated office of the Ministry of Justice, is included under the Ministry of Justice strategy.
	The strategy employed focuses on procuring as much renewable electricity as is feasible.
	The strategy deployed to meet the Department's energy targets is a system of monitoring buildings of similar ages, sizes and functions. We investigate any anomalies in demand. We also invest in energy saving measures in addition, promoting best practice.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Social Security Benefits: Patients

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what benefits are available to parents whose children below the age of three years are in hospital; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: Parents who are responsible for children below the age of three years who are in hospital are able to claim the same benefits and increases as all other persons responsible for children; the exact amounts that they receive will depend upon the individual circumstances of each such case.